connected by your strings
by Big Diesel
Summary: It started as a simple chat online with a stranger. This stranger wants more than being virtual friends with Jaune. She wants all of Jaune and she is determined to have her Jaune. Even if it hurts those who are close to him. It is a virtual cat-and-mouse game of "who done it." A stalker's relentless determination of getting Jaune while Lie Ren and Blake are caught in the web. {AU)
1. first entry

Jaune Arc could finally say that he was officially a man. The term itself was figurative. He looked to the title as a stepping stone of completing his first year of university. He was the first in his family to attend college, an accomplishment that couldn't be greater than earning a certificate in agriculture, which was something that the Arc family was innate to do. After selling his books for some spending money, Jaune went to the nearby diner for some pizza. He went to rent a DVD from a Redbox and returned a library book.

It wasn't easy living in the rural part of Vale. The university had a good huntsman program and his parents didn't want him to turn down their scholarship offer. He took the scholarship, knowing that there wouldn't be any other opportunities of another one. Especially after they were impressed when he had openly admitted of his cheating into Beacon Academy. On his acceptance letter, they included that his admission of his guilt gave him character.

Being alone in the college town wasn't bad. His parents were two hours away by flight. His parents were paying his rent and his amenities. He couldn't complain. He didn't have a set curfew (he was already responsible). He had his television, his laptop, and his video games when he felt bored. He kept in contact with his friends whenever he needed company. He made a few acquaintances during his time at the university. All-in-all, life was pretty decent for the blonde.

He decided to spend this summer in town. He wanted to advance in his major, which was a great suggestion by his academic advisor after his past year of scoring high marks. Also, he newfound independence was getting to him. As much as he missed his loving parents and his doting sisters, Jaune seized the opportunity. He wasn't sure if he would have that feeling again.

It was near three in the afternoon when he had come home. The sound of the air conditioner filled the cool house. He felt the sensation as he placed his items on the counter. He decided to check his emails on the laptop since he wasn't hungry yet. With his phone being repaired, the laptop was his only source of communication with the outside world.

He logged on to his 4chan account. He, himself, was too puzzled on his usage of the primitive site. It was probably because of the memories he shared with his teammates back in college. He, Lie Ren, Nora, and Pyrrha would spend countless hours trolling, laughing, or lamenting their actions on the site. Nostalgia hit him, followed by sadness.

He knew Pyrrha would have loved doing this if she were here. He clicked his tongue, trying not to think about his former girlfriend's death. The blonde has had a few dates with women but never followed through after the coffee date. They were pleasant, nice, friendly, but never really met his taste. Pyrrha was different. She gave an aura of a woman. That was the simplicity of an answer he could give. Those girls were girls. Pyrrha was a woman.

He stopped typing. He was thinking of her again. He reached into his drawer to get his rubberbands. A trick that he learned by Blake if he wanted to repel something that was repulsive. After a few flicks to the wrist, he was ready to return to the matter at hand. Earlier that morning, Lie Ren told him that he would be online at this certain time. Even though Facebook and Instagram was thriving today, but 4chan was nostalgia. It was like a ritual, better yet, a symbol of their friendship. This was what made their friendship stronger. Something that no one could take away. Nora didn't use it much. He doesn't get to see much of Nora since she had moved out of the country. They talk from time to time. Lie Ren mentioned that it was much of the same for him as well.

The feeling of their friendship on the verge of severance brought a chill to his spine. He saw that Lie Ren was online. He can overlook the feelings of the inevitable.

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _How goes it?_

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _Nothing much. Just got off from school._

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _Awesome! Can't believe that school is out. Thank God. I can finally relax for the summer._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _Are you still coming to stay here for the summer?_

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _Heck yeah! I got no other place to go. Money can only last so long from the rents' life insurance policy._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _You have a grave view about that, dude._

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _Not as a bad when I kick your ass on this video game I got._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _Dude, can't wait. Damn, we are such virgins._

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _Beats the alternative._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _At some point, we need to find girls._

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _Can't agree with you, more._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _Talk to Nora recently?_

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _Not in a few days. She has been very busy._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _Yeah! I spoke to Blake briefly last week. Talk to Weiss and Yang about a month ago. Ruby called me._

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _What they are talking about?_

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _Nothing much. Same thing. Life, college, etc, etc._

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _We need to do a reunion._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _In time, hopefully before the end of the summer._

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _I agree. Hopefully, by then we can have girlfriends._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _Here's hoping._

 _ **[the_ren_is_a_lie]:**_ _Hey, man. Gotta run. I got to go to take my last final._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _Alright, dude. Later._

The room got a little quieter for a moment. He had always pictured his friends to be together forever. Amazing how three years of high school and then graduation can prove him wrong, he lamentedly thought. He decided to scroll through a few tabs before calling it quits to watch a movie and eat his now lukewarm pizza until he saw he had a message.

He clicked on the tab. It was from a user called [jkab]. He jokingly tried pronouncing it before clicking on the profile. He nearly burst into laughter as the profile was cutesy and obviously belonging to a girl. In his opinion, it was like a Brony nightmare from Hell. He returned to the message that the stranger [jkab] had left.

 _I hope that you get this message to know that I find you interesting, Jaune. First, your username is funny. [Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings] is hilarious. In some way, I feel somewhat connected when you put that. It makes me feel warm. It's like you are playing with my strings. If you are, please respond. Thanks!_

 _~[jkab]_

Jaune didn't know how to respond that, especially from a stranger. His profile wasn't spectacular. He had only used the profile whenever he was with his teammates during their Beacon days. As he mentioned to himself, it was nostalgia.

Knowing for him, it could have been a prank or from a spambot. In the past, Jaune and Pyrrha used to troll other users by sending messages to fake profiles. This could have been one of them or Lie Ren or Nora messing with him.

He didn't give it a thought and decided to delete the message. He exited off of the tab and went to eat his now cold pizza.

He had spent the rest of his evening playing video games and watching his DVD. During his breaks, he did a Skype call with his parents. They asked him to visit, which he promised he would. They were excited to announce that his eldest sister was pregnant with twins. His twin sister, Joan, found a boyfriend. The youngest sister, Jeanette, found work at the local tavern. After settling his business with his family, he returned to the computer to have a bit of alone time.

He went to his tabs, searching for the bookmarks of his alone time materials. He decided that it was going to be a MILF night.

After spending a couple of hours in the fantasy of older women, he retired to his bed. He said his prayers to Oum before shutting his eyes into slumber.

* * *

 _He had imagined that he was in the desert. He was floating and drifting through a massive bonfire party. He saw people and they were wearing the most beautiful of outfits. It was like an array of fire, flashing in different colors. A sea of colors painting the desert sand, matching the light of the bonfire as well. Many were shooting orange, purple, and blue flames into the star-filled sky. Spectacular colors, he thought._

 _It was beautiful. He saw Lie Ren. He saw Nora. He saw Ruby and Yang. He saw Blake. He had even seen Weiss. He saw many people having a great time_ in _this festivity of lights._

 _Centered in the flames, he saw a mysterious woman._

 _She was wearing the most revealing genie outfit. The colors were blue, teal, and purple. She was dancing in the most provocative, yet spellbinding way. Her hair lies black and poker straight, yet soft, moving like prairie grass in the wind. It gives contrast to her face, so dark against her soft white skin. She is part of the beauty of this place rather than a thing apart. There is something of her spirit here was making everyone laugh._

 _She was alluring him, entrancing him, and inviting him. She waved her gentle palms for him to enter her direction. He did exactly what she wanted. She was smiling at him. Her eyes never left his sight._

' _What's your name,' asked Jaune inquisitively._

' _It's whatever you want it to be,' answered the mysterious woman._

' _Then what should I call you," asked Jaune._

 _When they finally unite, she grabbed him by the wrists, twirling him in circles._

' _Call me Iva.'_

 _The hypnotic music of trance began playing. She continued to spin him in circles and circles. She was smiling. He was smiling. The combination of colors and lights and friends flashing and flashing. He was finding peace._

 _For a moment, he imagined that he was heaven. If so, it was a place he would never leave._

 _'Jaune,' asked Iva._

 _'Yes, Iva,' replied Jaune._

 _'Take me away,' said Iva._

 _'How do you know my name?'_

 _Iva pursed her lips, waiting for his cue. With his inexperience on women, but enough practice through magazine pictures and pillows, he came and kissed her. It was a slight peck, but enough to taste her cherry lip gloss._

 _She chuckled. Of course, it would have made Jaune blushed._

 _'Sorry. I haven't_ had _much experience of being with a woman,' said Jaune._

 _'Don't beat yourself up, sweetheart,' she said. 'I have never said you were horrible.'_

 _'Really,' asked Jaune surprisingly._

 _'Amateurs have to start from somewhere,' she said. 'And I think you can use a few practices.'_

 _'Certainly,' said Jaune._

 _Iva took Jaune by the hand. He would have gone away from the dancing. Away from people. Just an oasis built for two. She told him to take a seat._

 _She gave him a peck on the cheek. He was blushing in excitement. However, she doesn't stop. Jaune began panting heavily from the newfound sensations Iva was giving him._

 _'Iva, but…,' said Jaune before getting interrupted._

 _'You wanted an older woman,' she said. 'Now I am showing you a taste of this nectar.'_

 _She pushed him down to the ground. The humidity contrasted the cold earth, but the heat was looming from her body. Her eyes were hungry for more of Jaune. Jaune stared as she began taking her hand into his shirt. Her soft palms gently waving on his chest created excitement. Excitement, especially, for his middleman downstairs._

 _He would have blushed and it wouldn't have gone without notice from Iva._

 _'Is that a clue in your_ pocket, _or you are just happy to see me,' she said._

 _Jaune went silent. Just willing to explore the new things that Iva had in store for him. She was coming closer and closer and closer. As she was approaching his pants, Jaune choked._

The vision was fading away and Iva was out of sight. He felt a strong sensation around his penis. It was feeling snug, but at the same time, a foreign, yet familiar sensation. When Jaune came to, it was darkness surrounding his bedroom.

He sat up on his bed to see that he was alone. None of his friends were there. There wasn't any party or dancing. The only thing occurring was the fact that Jaune had a wet dream for the first time in many years. He shut his eyes; not for the embarrassment of soaking his pajamas. The dream of such a beautiful woman sparking his mind. She was beautiful, ravishing. He tried closing his eyes to picture the scene, but he couldn't.

He had called it a lost as he went to the bathroom for a change of clothes.

* * *

A couple of days have passed since that dream encounter with the mystery woman. Since then, Jaune didn't have dreams. He was finishing putting up his laundry as he was preparing to go and get Lie Ren from the train station.

He was listening to his Pandora when he heard a ping from his 4chan.

He walked to the computer to see the message. He saw that it came from [jkab] again. He grabbed his lips with his teeth. He clicked on her message.

 _How come you didn't respond. I thought you were going to pull my strings. You still haven't answered yet. Speak to you soon!_

 _~[jkab]_

Jaune looked to ceiling with humor under his belt. He knew that it had to be either Lie Ren or Nora messing with him. If it wasn't them, it was probably a spambot. Not wanting to entertain it, he deleted the message and returned to his music.

It wasn't even a few minutes before hearing another ping in his notifications.

It came from [jkab] again.

 _Why haven't you responded to me? I must know why aren't you, Jaune. I thought you were going to pull my strings. You make me feel some kind of way. A feeling I don't want to let go. Please hear me out, Jaune._

 _~[jkab]_

He was beginning to become annoyed. At first, it was funny to him that his friends would play this game, but it was becoming annoying. He had deleted it once more before returning to his music.

Another message. It was [jkab] again.

 _Why won't you talk to me? I thought we can make a connection. You seem like a person I would like to know. I think you are different from the other guys. I thought you were going to pull my strings. Why haven't you, Jaune? You make me feel some kind of way. A feeling I don't want to let go. Please hear me out, Jaune_

 _Love,_

 _~[jkab]_

Jaune knew a spambot wouldn't be this consistent. This was nothing but the handiwork of his dearest friends. He decided to humor them. He sat in his chair and typed a message.

 _Greetings "[jkab],"_

 _I am going to humor you on your request. In order to let me pull your strings, you must know which song captivates me the most._

 _Jaune_

He had sent the message. A few seconds later, he had a reply.

 _You don't have a set song. Your musical taste varies. Some days, it's rock. Some days, it's hip-hop. You gave me a trick question._

 _Love,_

 _~[jkab]_

Jaune licked his lips. He was impressed of the quick response. "Clever girl...or guy," he said. He knew that it had to be from Lie Ren or Nora. He looked to the clock. He had a few minutes before picking up Lie Ren. Just enough for him to give a discussion when meeting the prankster himself. He typed back.

 _You are correct! A person who knows me could only answer that. But seriously, Lie Ren or Nora, very funny. I was going to entertain this, but this is getting a bit juvenile._

 _Jaune_

He sent the message. He was cracking his knuckles. He was in mid-yawn when he got a response.

 _Who is Lie Ren? Nora? I hope those names are people that you only have a platonic relationship. Sorry, that was wrong. I really do care about you, Jaune. Understand that you really pull my strings. My heartstrings, that is. I know it is weird to say, but I am really falling for you. Now, let's stop being silly and have a serious conversation. I would love to meet you._

 _Love,_

 _~[jkab]_

 _P.S.: I wanted to congratulate you on being an uncle! Totes happy for you!_

His jaw dropped when seeing that message. A spambot couldn't have predicted that he was going to be an uncle. He wrote back.

 _This is weird! Who in the hell are you? This is creeping me out._

A response came to him.

 _ **[jkab]:**_ _Stop being silly. I am your girlfriend. Not yet at least._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _Stop saying that! I don't even know you!_

 _ **[jkab]:**_ _Like I said, not yet. But in time you will._

 _ **[Jaunelovestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _Who are you?_

 _ **[jkab]:**_ _Your girlfriend to be. But for now, you can call me, Iva._

 _ **To be continued….**_


	2. second entry

Lie Ren was paying for the pizza this time. It was the least he could do after getting wasted at a party of one of Jaune's acquaintance. Jaune was taking it lightly. The drunken best friend wasn't responsible for his own actions. From throwing up in his car, throwing up in Jaune's fish tank (although the fish was near the end of its days), and playing the role of son asking for his father's comfort. If anything, Jaune knew he was a perfect match for fatherhood.

Jaune yawned as Lie Ren slid the box of pizza onto the table. The smell of a Chicago deep dish pizza entering his nostrils, calling his name to devour him. Before Lie Ren could grab the first piece, he slapped it from his hand.

"Ouch," replied Lie Ren while waving his aching hand. "Bitch!"

"Bitch is right after taking care of your ass last night," said Jaune as he took a bite of his favorite pizza. "What happened to being straight edge?"

Lie Ren choked on his pizza while trying to answer his question. He hated when Jaune got him off guard with his questioning. "Those days ended after taking my first Thermodynamics class." He raised his soda can in the can. "Can you 'au revoir les enfants?'"

"No," answered Jaune. "I know the word moderation is somewhere in the brain." He stood up, sticking out his tongue while scuffling his best friend's hair. "Oh where, oh where did my Lie Ren go? Wait, wait, wait. Oh, where. Oh, where did moderation go? I can't see it. Surrounding by this bushy forest."

Lie Ren pushed him off. "Whatever! Be grateful that I have bought the pizza." He said with his mouthful while searching for his second slice. "Also, be grateful that I have paid for the damages of anything else."

Jaune didn't go any further. He knew his response was sincere. Mistakes happened, concluded Jaune. He returned to his silence as he pondered on taking his third slice of pizza. He rubbed the bridge of his nose. He yawned once more. He didn't get much sleep last night. Matter of factly, he couldn't manage to get much sleep since the sudden interaction with Iva, or [jkab] began.

Lie Ren tapped the tap to get Jaune's attention. "Were you able to solve that problem with your issue?"

He furrowed his eyebrows. "What issue are you talking about?" Jaune knew his question, but didn't want to answer it. Since Iva introduce herself, she hasn't left him alone. Iva consistently sent him messages on his 4chan account. It was the usual greeting and desires of his affection.

 _Hello, lover. I missed you today._

 _Oh, c'mon, Jaune. I just want to talk._

 _Please don't ignore me, sweetie. Don't ignore your girlfriend like that._

 _I'm sorry about telling you about being an uncle. I didn't know it was so secret._

It kept him up at night. It worried him to the point of stress. He didn't want to worry his parents for they had enough worries of their own. He didn't want to tell Lie Ren because he might have taken it lightly.

Instead, he decided to inform the forum moderator about it. He explained in full detail that he was harassed by Iva or [jkab]. He included that she knew his name and the news of his sister's pregnancy. He stated to the moderator that he didn't allow his internet life to connect with his personal life. The moderator promised him to investigate the user, [jkab].

"Yeah. I spoke to someone about it. They would be right on it." He finished his statement as taking a draw of his soda. The only reason why Lie Ren knew was from a nightmare that he had a couple of nights ago. He woke up in a shriek of terror. Lie Ren ran into the room to console his panicked friend.

 _I was sitting in a quiet room. There were people there. They all had the look of sorrow. One by one they stopped in front of me, giving me their condolences. Condolences? What was going on, I thought. Who in the world was dead? I want to get up from the chair, but I wasn't able to move. As if a strong force of gravity prevented me to move. To my right, a door opened. I saw a woman wearing nothing but black. Her veil, her hair, her dress. Black, black, black. Black as a raven. Black as the night sky. Black as the soul of doubt and despair. She carried waywardly to my direction. No one seen to notice the woman coming to my direction. She paused, jerking her head to my sight. Through the veil, I saw her eyes._

 _She looked like the mysterious woman I met in my dreams. "Come," she uttered gently. I could move. I stood up and I take her hand. We brushed past the crowd of people and she lead me to a hallway. No one paid attention to us. I wanted to know where we were going, but she said nothing more. She just looked forward. I wanted to leave, to move, but my body wouldn't let me. It was as if a force hindered me. As if I have to do._

 _We stopped at a door. She pushed it in. There we were. It was an altar. The room was filled with people. I continued to walk down the aisle. I saw Blake. From my peripheral, I saw Weiss. In another row, I see Ruby. I saw Nora, Velvet, even Cardin. Why were my classmates here? Before I could answer, she pressed her finger to my lip, enticing silence._

 _The room turned dark, with the exception of the light in front of me. Lo and behold I saw Lie Ren. He wasn't clothed. He was covered in a red substance. It didn't look like blood, or so I thought. I widened my eyes when seeing my father lying deceased. My father was dead. His chest was torn open. Lie Ren was holding something, rinsing himself. I couldn't believe that he was bathing himself with my father's heart._

" _His love is a sacrifice to declare your love for me." Iva spoke, grabbing my hand gently. She grabbed my other hand. "Today is a special day as we are together in front of our living Oum to confess and to profess our love."_

" _To confess and to profess your love." The group said in unison._

 _Lie Ren had the knife. He grabbed my father's still beating heart. He had split it. I wanted to drop to my knees, but I couldn't. Once more a force was there hindering me._

" _This is the sacrifice that your father has made. For you to get with your bride." He handed me a piece of my father's heart. "Take this as a proclamation of eternal bliss with your bride."_

Lie Ren played with his straw. "I wouldn't beat yourself over it. Everyone has strange nightmares." He blew into his hair. "Why would I want to kill your father? Why would I do that semi-Satanic ritual?"

He scratched his arm. "It looked too real. I could smell the iron. I could feel the pressure. My breath was compressed. I didn't know what to do. It felt like drowning, Ren."

Lie Ren patted Jaune's hand with the tone of assurance. "Nightmares happen. We get them. I wouldn't let this "Iva" girl get to you. Knowing for you, you may have accidentally typed it into the account." He scratched his stomach before taking another bite of pizza. He took a piece and placed it down. He extended his hands on the table. "Our body, better yet our mind is capable of doing things absentmindedly. Maybe you put the announcement on the site and just forgot."

"Lie Ren, I…"

"Let me finish, bro! I believe you. I know you don't post anything public on that site of all things. I just believe that you were being a little careless."

Jaune raised his eyebrow fervently.

Lie Ren coughed, knowing he didn't need a reminder. "As I was saying, "Iva" was doing typical things a guesser would do. She may have thought you were being predictive." He slid his plate aside. "Say that you answered her wrong, then maybe she would have stopped. But because you told her, you may have given her reason to entertain."

He raised his hand, alerting Jaune that he wasn't finished. "Not putting any blame on you. It happens. You got caught in the heat of the moment and you slipped. Now, the moderator is going to handle it. Just take a break from that site for awhile. Why the moderator gives you the okay, then we can move on." He stretched his arms. "Relax," he said aloud. "This is summer vacation. We shouldn't have to worry about internet stalkers and nightmares." He reached out for his wallet and left a few dollars on the table. "Since it's still daylight, let's get some air. You spend too much time on the computer as it is."

Jaune wanted to object, to challenge Lie Ren's statement, but couldn't. Maybe he was right. Maybe "Iva" was throwing random questions and he happened to answer the right one. He didn't have to entertain it. He remembered in his psychology class about the power of a thought. _A thought is only powerful if you allow it. Sometimes a thought is closer to the truth, to reality, than an action. You can say anything, you can do anything, but you can't fake a thought. Thoughts can turn into action if you allow it. Or it can stay where it belongs by replacing it with another thought._

Jaune exited the restaurant with Lie Ren. He threw the keys to him so he could drive. He tried not to think about it. He tried focusing on other things. Like what plans he was going to do with Lie Ren.

* * *

A couple of days have passed since that talk with Lie Ren. There haven't been any further incidents with him and Iva. His sleep returned as he got sounded rest. Classes had started for the summer, giving him time to occupy his thoughts. Lie Ren found a job at the same pizzeria they ate at. They were able to get in contact with Nora recently. She is planning to return home by the end of June. He offered Nora to stay at his apartment since Lie Ren was staying there as well. Nora was grateful.

Things were getting back to normal in a way.

It was near three in the afternoon when Jaune came back to his apartment. He was planning to go to the pizzeria later on and hang with Ren on his lunch break. He placed his keys on the counter and was planning to occupy his time playing _Overwatch_ until he got a message on his phone.

He sat on his couch. He scrolled and saw it was from the moderator.

He clicked on the email.

 _Dear Jaune,_

 _This is the moderator, [nopiz] here. I and fellow moderators have gone through an investigation regarding your complaint between you and user, [jkab]. What we gather also concerned us. It appears that her IP address matches your IP address. Whenever we traced your messages, it led to your IP address. As we take seriously of your concerns of harassment on this site, we must address that maybe somebody has access to your computer. My suggestion is to talk with whoever lives with you about. With that, there is nothing much we can do._

 _Our team will continue to support you as we don't want you to leave this site. If you have any questions, return us an email._

 _[nopiz]_

Jaune's breath became shallow. As if a vacuum came and sucked up all of the sounds, he held the phone in the disbelief that he had read.

 _It couldn't be,_ he thought _. No one has access to my computer except me. It wasn't Lie Ren. This occurred before his showing up. What's going on here? This has to be some kind of mistake. It has to be. It has to be._

He was uttering, his felt pressure building in his mind. He gripped the couch, digging his nails into the fabric.

 _Was somebody pirating my internet or something? Would that even lead to them registering as the same IP?_

He hurriedly entered his room and turned on his laptop. He clicked on 4chan and saw a single message on the computer.

It came from [jkab] or "Iva."

Nervously, he clicked on the message.

 _Oh my sweet Jaune,_

 _You have returned. I missed so much dearly. I really, really miss you. You are making my heart flutter. Are you playing with my heartstrings? I have struck a note, a tune, if you add. Return my email, cutie._

 _Iva._

He decided to return her message.

 _I don't know who you are or where you are from, but this is worrying me sick. Please, leave me alone. I don't know you. This is not a game. Please, I just want to be alone._

 _Jaune_

He sat in his chair. Sweat evacuating from his pores. His underarms were producing sweat. Even as he fidgeted, he was nervous. He pondered on calling the police until he got a message.

 _I can never leave you alone. I am your girlfriend, silly. Oh, boy, what am I saying. You are going to be my lover._

 _[jkab]_

Her status was active. He clicked on her profile to chat with her.

 _ **[Jaunelikestoplaywithyourstrings]:** Who are you? Please, this is getting out of hand._

 _ **[jkab]:** Teehee! You are cute when you are trying to act seriously. Who am I? I am your dream girl. I am your girlfriend. Your lover to be._

 _ **[Jaunelikestoplaywithyourstrings]:**_ _You don't know me._

 _ **[jkab]:**_ _Of course, I do. You're Jaune Arc. You attended Beacon Academy. You are the youngest of eight siblings…._

He didn't read further. He exited the tab and closed his laptop. He reached into his drawer next to his laptop. It was prescription pills when he was undergoing stress. He took two and swallowed quickly. He went to the bathroom as he drank from the sink. He applied water to his face. He was flushing his face repeatedly.

"Get it together. Get it together," he told himself as he looked in the mirror. Thinking he had his composure, he returned to his laptop and disconnected the charger. He forcefully shut down the laptop and stored it in his chest in front of his bed. Afterward, he went to the living room and lied on the couch. He turned on the television to connect to his Hulu. He clicked on it and allowed _Mysterious Girlfriend X_ to play.

He looked at the screen until he fell asleep.

 _Jaune, wake up!_

 _Jaune, wake up!_

Jaune fixed his eyes, adjusting to the light when hearing the voice of Lie Ren entering the apartment.

"Hey, man," he said while carrying a few bags. "I got dinner if you are hungry."

He looked over the couch to the kitchen. He saw that Lie Ren had Mexican food. A change of pace from the leftover pizza they have been eating. "You have been asleep," asked Lie Ren.

He scratched his stomach. "Yeah, I have. What time is it?"

"About a quarter after eleven."

"Damn, I have been really tired."

Jaune stretched his arms outwardly. He allowed the scent of dinner to be motivation as he got up from the couch. As he was walking, he heard Lie Ren raised his voice.

"Oh, shit," spat Lie Ren.

"What's the matter," asked Jaune concerningly.

""Sad news to announce with 4chan. We are sad to report that moderator, _[nopiz]_ has died."" Lie Ren kept reading. "4chan's moderator, _[nopiz],_ real name Steven Okazaki was found dead in his home. He was discovered by his mother, earlier this evening, after not receiving a phone call from her son. Concerned for his well-being, she traveled to his home where she found him. Police are conducting an investigation. As far as they know, foul play has been suspected. We, at 4chan, will keep you up to date with further information. May Oum be with his family at this time. Rest in Peace, Steven.""

Jaune's stomach churned. A swell of emotions came from his stomach as he ran to the bathroom. He entered the bathroom, relieving any contents from his mouth. He continued retching for a few more minutes. Lie Ren came to his aid a few moments later.

"Jaune, what's wrong," he asked.

" _[nopiz]...[nopiz]..._ was the...moderator...I...talked with today." He threw up some more into the toilet. He looked to Lie Ren. "I just...received...an email earlier today."

"Let me get you some water," said Lie Ren as he exited from the restroom. As he struggled to stand up from the toilet, he had received an email message. He sat on the toilet to open the message.

* * *

 _ **To: jaune_arc**_

 _ **From: jkab2018**_

 _ **Subject: Important News**_

 _My condolences to that moderator, [nopiz]. He was really a great person. A smart intellect, no chinks in his armor. Although he was digging into things he shouldn't have gotten in the first place, he was still a great individual. May he rest in peace in the hands of our loving Oum._

 _Jaune Arc, I love you this much to know that I will do anything and everything to show my love for you. I am your girlfriend, your lover, your best friend. I just don't like it when people want to stick their noses into places where they should've never been. My love for you is that deep. I am capable, I mean I am very capable of furthering my proof of that love._

 _Iva._

* * *

Jaune rubbed his face. Sweat pouring down his face. His hands were shaking. How did she get his email? Did she confess to murdering him? Was Iva that capable to kill someone to prove herself to Jaune? That worried him.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard Lie Ren knock on the door.

"Dude! Don't be alarmed. There are two police officers at the door wanting to talk to you."

He sighed heavily, fear and worry showing on his face. "What do they want?"

"Like I said, they need to speak with you."

As he adjusted himself to meet with police, a final thought entered his mind.

 _My love for you is that deep. I am capable, I mean I am very capable of furthering my proof of that love._

 _ **To be continued….**_


	3. third entry

Jaune didn't have time to put on his hoodie when the police placed him in handcuffs. They pressed his stomach against the wall, explaining that he was under arrest for the murder of Steven Okazaki. He was confused, feeling helpless and disconnected. Everything became a whirlwind. Lie Ren tried reasoning with the officers, however, it fell on deaf ears. Onlookers watched and gathered at the complex as they took him downstairs. A whirl of sirens and the sea of blue and red surrounded the scene. Was it necessary? Why did it have to be him? He was a man of conviction. He cheated his way into Beacon Academy, but those days are dead. He had never had broken the speed limit. He doesn't even have a criminal record. Suddenly, the police are labeling him as a murderer? He wasn't an expert on policing, but he knew a thing called due process. At least, they could have voluntarily taken him to the station for questioning.

Never in his nineteen years of life had he felt so low.

He cursed under his breath for the woman who caused it all.

 _Iva._

The detectives grilled him for hours. They took turns in that concrete box they called an interrogation room. Metal chairs, concrete tables, scribbled walls. Jaune was chained to the table. No mercy was given. _Internet killer, murderer, suspect, criminal, nutcase_ , names that Jaune would have never considered himself to be. They implicated to him that there were fingerprints at the scene of the crime. Making things worse, they displayed pictures of the crime.

Steven Okazaki didn't have a fighting chance. The murderer didn't spare any mercy on his life. There was blunt force trauma to his brain. His face looked as if the murder was chiseling a new face. Blood trajectory was throughout the room. If it wasn't enough, the murdered slit his wrists, his neck, and his ankles. He was found in the shower hanging onto the nozzle. Blood draining out of his body and into the shower.

Jaune threw up when seeing those pictures.

Jaune learned through the detectives that the victim lived three hours away in a neighboring village. The murder occurred sometime that evening. Jaune explained that during that timeframe, he was at home sleeping. He even told officers that he could contact those places that seen him before coming home. He even told officers that the convenient store across the street had a security camera. The complex was a one-way entrance.

Despite their strong implications of doubt, they would look into it. Until then, Jaune had to spend time in a holding cell until their investigation was complete.

Jaune compared himself to an empty shell when he finished signing the release form from the police station. The receptionist returned his items and buzzed him out of the building. Emotions swelled out of his eyes the moment he saw Lie Ren. He wasn't alone. Tears dripped down his flushed eyes after seeing Blake Belladonna standing beside Lie Ren. She, too, had flushed and reddened eyes. What reasons should the brunette shed tears? She wasn't being interrogated over the course of thirty-six hours. She wasn't confined to a cell, sitting amongst alleged robbers, murderers, and rapist. She didn't have to sport the uniform that labeled him as a prisoner.

She extended her arms, reaching out to the terrified Jaune. He dropped his bags, running to Blake. He buried his face into her buxom, releasing the floodgates he refused to shed while he was on the inside. She brushed her hand over his head, securing it tightly, affirming that he was going to be okay.

"Shh, shh," she whispered. "It's over. No need to shed tears. Everything is going to be okay. We are here for you."

Police were forced to let him go. Security footage from the convenient store confirmed Jaune's entering the apartment complex and his departure following his arrest. The establishments that Jaune mentioned confirmed his whereabouts prior to the crime. What frustrated Jaune the most that during their interrogation, he had mentioned the mysterious Iva. More than once did he try to present his proof of evidence. The IP address, the messages, and the like.

Unfortunately, Jaune lived in a small town. Small town policemen weren't capable of handling big city problems. When leading him to get released, they finally said that they would look into it.

Blake Belladonna allowed Jaune to sit in the front seat of her car. Lie Ren sat behind Blake. Jaune was silent. He didn't really have much to say. He just want to go home.

A few hours have passed. Jaune lied in bed. He couldn't sleep. Despite having a hot shower and a change of clothes, his eyes were wide open. Wider than his caution of falling asleep in the holding tank. He didn't look to his computer. Matter of factly, police quickly decided to come by and to take his laptop.

He didn't look at his phone. He wouldn't expect much. Lie Ren covered him on the avoidance of his parents.

It was Blake Belladonna that paid for his bail.

Knowing that his insomnia was futile, he got out of bed. Wearing his grey Beacon Academy sweatsuit, he stepped into the living room. Blake and Ren were on the couch. Both were stunned, but a hint of relief came to them as well.

"I am glad that you are back with the living," said Blake. Blake stood, brushing her fingers through her hair as she walked into the kitchen. "I made some dinner for you. Have a seat."

"How long was I 'out?'" He didn't want to alarm them. He walked to the table where she already had his napkins and silverware ready.

"About a few hours. It's about near ten in the evening." She was stirring something in a pot. Whatever she was cooking, Jaune observed, it smelled delicious. "It isn't gourmet, but I made do with whatever groceries you guys have." She clinked the pot, hinting to Lie Ren that dinner was ready.

"Thank you for paying my bail." Jaune's voice was raspy. He didn't look at Blake in the eye. Blake was a woman that came from a dynasty comparable to Weiss Schnee. He felt embarrassed, yet honored that she went out of her way to do that.

"Think nothing of it." She put the bowl on the table. She used the spoon to pour their dinner into his bowl. "It's an old Faunus recipe. You will enjoy it." She winked before going to pour some to Ren and for herself.

"No, seriously. I do." He turned to Ren. "Thank you for getting them to not contact my parents." He scratched his forehead. "They have too much worry in their brain."

Blake removed the apron as she sat at the table. "I wouldn't be too concerned. They are your parents. They have a right to be worried about you."

He took a bite of her stew. It was delicious. "Be as it may, it's neutralized." He stammered as he took another bite. "For now. Though I still think it was bullshit that I have to pay a fee if I was let go."

"Typical small town bullshit," uttered Lie Ren. "Know that all too well."

Blake lightly dabbed her napkin. Jaune loved her etiquette. She has always been a pretty woman, but she was never his type. Honestly, he really pictured her and Lie Ren together. They would make a perfect couple.

Blake turned to Jaune. She displayed a serious look on her face. It wasn't often that Blake displayed that side. Normally the quiet and reserved type, it looked as though she had something to say. "Lie Ren tells me that these troubles began because of this Iva?"

Jaune dropped his spoon and made a glowing glare at Lie Ren. He looked at his bowl. "I am sorry, man. Blake wouldn't let go of the topic. She wanted to know. Sorry!"

"There isn't much to talk about," he said as taking a bite of the stew. "A stalker that is harassing me and possibly involved in the murder of that moderator."

"This is serious." Blake tapped her nimble, manicured nails on the table. "A person who knows you, using your IP address, and possibly blaming you for the murders? That is damning."

Jaune sighed. "I don't even know how they got my fingerprints? Also, the place they said Steven was from, I have never visited there."

"Do you think that person has been in your house?" Lie Ren questioned.

"Very doubtful. During the school year, I never brought friends to my apartment. I say that because they weren't really my friends." He took a spoonful of Blake's stew. "The only people that has been here has been my parents, my sisters, and my landlord."

"Do you think the landlord might be a possibility?" Blake was sounding more like an interrogator than a supported friend. Blake noticed that and softened herself.

"He's eighty-seven years with a wooden leg and one eye," answered Jaune. "A bit of an ass, but he appreciates that I pay my rent on time." He took a sip of wine to calm his nerves. "If we did squabble, it was because of my loud video game playing."

"Maintenance workers?"

"They come from time to time. Changing filters for the air conditioner." He put his finger to his lip. "They had to fix my broken sink recently."

"A possibility," answered Blake. She poured a glass of wine into the glass. "I say this. Lie Ren told me that you have a person that is messing with you on the internet. Sending you messages and even implicating you in a murder, correct?"

Jaune shook his head as confirmation.

Blake took a sip of her drink. She winced due to its bitterness. Nevertheless, she swallowed and placed it down. "Tell me what does Iva know?"

"She knows my full name. She knows I have a family. I am also very certain that she has details regarding my informing Steven." Jaune sighed heavily. "There's no way in hell she was able to intercept that without…"

"Hacking," said Lie Ren.

"Exactly," retorted Blake. "This Iva is connected to you. Obviously, she is a hacker."

"I didn't think of that measure," said Jaune as he nodded. "I must have exposed some information that got her spy on me. Instead of taking money or buying things for credit, I guess she is buying my time."

"I am not sure," said Lie Ren. "One thing is for certain. She is very aware that you have informed the moderator. She probably knows that the police has your laptop."

"Spot on," said Blake. "My biggest suggestion is to shut off all of your technological information. Start over again. This time, be more careful who you are relaying information out to."

"Agreed," said Jaune. "It worries me though. Do you think she knows my family's whereabouts."

Blake poured some wine into his glass. "I wouldn't worry yourself about that. Let's get those other things out of the way first."

The next day, the trio returned to the police station to give them all of his electronic devices. Against his advice, Blake told them to keep it. Afterward, she, Lie Ren, and Jaune went to the electronic store to purchase Jaune new electronics. Jaune was grateful that Blake was buying his electronics for him.

"Don't worry about the cost now, Jaune," she explained to him. "I know you will pay me back in some way."

After getting Jaune some brand new electronics, the trio returned to the apartment where they decided to partake in Chinese food and playing video games. Later that evening, the trio were sitting on the patio. Jaune had a makeshift bed big enough for the three of them to enjoy themselves.

"I am glad that you reached for me, Ren." Blake patted Lie Ren on the shoulder. Jaune knew that excited him. Jaune was acutely aware of Lie Ren's crush on Blake. Even during their Beacon days, Lie Ren felt he was out of reach.

"Don't mention it." Lie Ren was licking the strawberry flavored cigar. Blake was kind enough to bring some rapier-laced marijuana. Jaune wasn't a smoker, but the few days he had, he didn't mind a high. Lie Ren lit his blunt and inhaled. He passed it to Blake where she took a smoke. She passed it to Jaune.

Of course, he was hesitating. Blake wrapped her fingers tenderly on his shoulder. "It won't bite. Take a puff." Jaune blushed as she assisted him with the smoke. He blew into the air, coughing in the process.

"You're definitely not a smoker," said Lie Ren.

"Nope, he isn't," confirmed Blake as she was laughing.

"Be as it may, thanks for you guys being here," he said genuinely. "It really means a lot. Despite the hell I have been going through, you guys remind me that there is peace within the storm."

Lie Ren patted Jaune on his back. "You're my best friend. You know I will hold you down."

Jaune felt Lie Ren's sincerity. "Appreciate it, bro."

Blake grabbed both of the boys and kissed them on both of their cheeks. "Oh, dawww. I just love you guys so much. That's why I care about you guys." She took another smoke of their marijuana. She pulled out her cell phone and clicked on Pandora. Boards of Canada's Twoism entered the airways of the patio. Silence filled the trio as they continued to smoke their marijuana.

* * *

"Do you miss Pyrrha?"

Jaune felt a bolt of electricity when Blake asked that sudden question. He scratched under his arm, looking at the stars. He remained silent as he pondered on the answer. He wasn't upset. She wanted to know. Many wanted to know.

He never really gave them a direct answer.

He stretched his arms, allowing his hands for his head to rest. "Do I miss her? Of course, I do. Am I the only one?"

Blake took a smoke before passing it to Lie Ren. "We all do. She played an important factor in your team. She was a great person to all." She stopped talking. She looked at the moon. "Her death, excuse me, her demise still bothers me." She sighed. "I felt helpless. Hell, we all did." She turned to Jaune with a serious look. A look that can be compared in certain light as a mother. "She was our friend, but she was your woman."

"I...I...I try not to think about it, Blake," said Jaune in a calm manner. "I try to not bring her up. It won't do any good. Just creates tears and despair. Stuff that I won't be able to handle."

"You can't blame yourself for her death," she said. "And holding back isn't going to help either."

"Then what?" Jaune sat up, putting his arms on his knees. "Have people to feel sorry for you? Telling you that things will be straight? You will be alright? How would they know, Blake?"

"Jaune."

Lie Ren sat quietly beside Blake. He sat up to observe Blake and Jaune.

"Do they know the pain of losing a girl you really loved? Do they know that it keeps you up at night? Do they know of the plans, the promises, the hopes, the dreams for our future?" Jaune wiped his tears with his sleeve. "Talking at night until daybreak, making pen tattoos on our arms." He paused. "The promise of giving each other our most important gift that only a special person could receive." He sniffled. "We were supposed to make love on our prom night."

"You didn't," asked Blake.

Jaune retrieved the marijuana and took a smoke. "No. I couldn't do it."

"Why," asked Lie Ren.

"I was afraid that if we have sex, then she would stop loving me."

Blake wrapped her arms around his shoulder. "It's okay. It's okay."

"No, it isn't," he said to them. "I lied to Pyrrha about being a virgin."

Blake and Lie Ren went quiet. They looked at each other inquisitively before returning to Jaune.

"We built our foundation on trust. I felt cursed when lying to her about she being my first kiss. I felt cursed that I lied to her about my virginity."

Lie Ren interjected. "The world isn't perfect, Jaune. Lies happen. We make them up sometimes to conceal the truth in order of protection."

"It happens to the best of us, Jaune," said Blake. "It doesn't make you a bad person."

Jaune's lips quivered when he said the next few words. "Lie Ren, Blake. There is something you should know." He landed his chin on his knee. He took a breath before exhaling loudly.

 _My parents told me to call her Aunt Salem. She was my mother's stepsister. She moved to my home after recently separating from her husband. It was supposed to be temporarily, but she stayed for two years._

 _During those two years, she got really acquainted with me. She took care of me and my sisters when my parents worked. She always was involved in our lives. She attended parent-teacher conferences, school festivals, church functions, everything. She treated everyone fairly, but with me, I was something special._

 _She took a special interest in me. She always told me there was something special about me. She always told me that I can go to my highest potential. She is partly the reason why I wanted to be a huntsman._

 _If I understood then what I understood now. Maybe, I would have been a different person._

Blake covered her mouth and Lie Ren looked away. Both knew where the story was leading to.

"If you don't want to talk about it, then we understand, Jaune," explained Lie Ren.

"Yeah," concurred Blake. "The last thing we wanted you to do was to relive bad memories."

Jaune rubbed his face with his sleeves. He stood up. "I am going to call it a night. I am going to get a beer and head to sleep. I had quite a busy day and I want to sleep it off, hopefully."

"Get some rest, kid," said Lie Ren.

"Good night," said Blake.

Jaune waved to his friends goodnight as he went to the refrigerator to get a glass of beer. He took a few swallows as he made his way to the bedroom. He slipped under the covers. His breathing was shallow. Uncertain if insomnia or a nightmare would affect his sleeping. He made a small prayer to Oum. He rested his eyes.

He went into slumber.

* * *

Jaune screamed loudly as he woke up from that horrid nightmare. He was panting loudly; he was having a shortage of breath, and his chest felt heavy. He felt sweat throughout his body as the bed became a substitute for a sponge. He saw the flash of lightning and the triumphant sound of thunder. He sat up on the bed to witness the shadows of the rain, doing its performance of the night, from her window in her bedroom.

He hoped that Blake and Lie Ren were back inside, but he was too tired to leave his room. He reached for his cell phone. It displayed the time to be a few minutes past three in the morning. He saw that had some messages on his phone. He assumed it to be his parents, his sisters, or Nora. He clicked on the messages.

It came from an unrecognizable number. He opened the tab.

 _Jaune, are you mad at me. Please pick up!_

 _Please, Jaune. Answer me! Please, I didn't mean to put you in harm's way._

 _I am sorry. I am sorry._

 _He was a pest. Steven was a pest. He needed to be put in his place._

 _He was in the way of our love. Please answer me, sweetie._

 _If I would've known the police were to be involved, it would have been different._

 _Text me, dear._

 _Please, I need you._

 _You didn't think I would get this number._

 _You can't run from me, Jaune._

 _You are my lover. I need you._

 _Where are you, Jauney?_

 _Jauney is important to me._

 _I want you to be my groom._

 _I want you. I need you. I want you inside me._

 _I love this blonde knight. Make a maiden out of me!_

 _Please, Jaune. Don't be like this!_

 _Please, I am hurting myself._

 _You don't want Blake and Ren to be in harm's way. Don't you?_

 _Answer my text!_

 _Where in the hell are you?_

 _I love you, Jaune. I am sorry._

It didn't take a genius to know that it was Iva who had this number. A warm sensation secreted in his pants. Fear riveted his mind. He ran to the window where he threw his phone into the rain.

He jumped into bed and prayed to Oum.

Even in the darkness, he could still hear his phone beeping messages.


	4. fourth entry

**_A few years earlier..._**

' _Hey, Auntie Salem, it was fun playing at the playground today. I really enjoyed myself.'_

' _I am glad you did, Jauney! You were reawakening some old bones of mine.'_

' _You're not that old, Auntie Salem. You are young and beautiful.'_

' _You think so, my dear?'_

' _I do. You are the most beautiful woman in the whole world!'_

' _I glad that you think so, Jauney.'_

' _Does that mean I can get ice cream?'_

' _Heaven's no, Jauney! You already had three popsicles at the park.'_

' _Aw man! You were counting?'_

' _Yep! Yep! How about tomorrow we can get some ice cream. How's that sound?'_

' _Thank you! Thank you! I really do love you now, Auntie.'_

' _Do you...really like me, Jauney?'_

' _I do, Auntie. I love you!'_

' _I love you, too, Jauney! I love you till the ends of the Earth.'_

' _Till the ends of the Earth and then some.'_

' _Rightfully so. Hey, Jaune. Since the girls are out and your parents are at work, I want to share something with you.'_

' _Share something with me?'_

' _Hmm hmm. A special, secret kind of game.'_

'" _A special, secret kind of game?"'_

' _A game for the two of us. A game that will create a bond between us.'_

' _I can't tell anyone?'_

' _It wouldn't be special if everybody knows about it. Trust me, you will like it.'_

' _I will like it?'_

' _Of course, sweetie. Do you trust your Aunt Salem?'_

' _Yes, I do. I love you. Ok, for you, I will try it.'_

' _You promise you won't tell anyone, Jauney?'_

' _Yes, ma'am.'_

' _Not your mother. Not your father. None of your sisters. Noone. Understand?'_

' _An Arc never backs down on his word, Aunt Salem.'_

' _That's a good boy, Jauney. Now, let's go to the bedroom and we'll begin our game.'_

' _What's the name of the game?'_

' _Close the door behind you and I will say the name.'_

' _Okay, Auntie.'_

' _Excellent. The game we are about to play is called the Sword and Sheath.'_

' _Sounds like fun!'_

' _Oh, it is fun. You will like it.'_

' _Tell me! Tell me!'_

' _Okay, it is simple. One of us has to play a sword and the other has to play the sheath. Since this is your first time, I will let you play the sword.'_

' _That is cool.'_

' _I will play the sheath.'_

* * *

Jaune was turning the page of his manga when Lie Ren entered the tiny cubicle of the University's newly-established Manga Cafe. Lie Ren found a seat in front of the computer while Jaune was sitting on the bean bag chair.

"Just got off of the phone with Nora," said Lie Ren with an enthusiastic look. Lie Ren couldn't have been any happier than a sow sitting in its own excrement. His friend, better yet soul sister, was to be arriving from overseas in a few days. "I can't believe that she is coming here." He displayed a strong smile. A smile that couldn't be contained with anything. It actually had brought Jaune a smile on his flushed face. He hasn't experienced that kind of a smile in the last couple of weeks.

Jaune placed the book down. "I am happy as well. A reunion with the team. Bringing back our Beacon youth."

"Don't forget we have Blake added in our equation," added Lie Ren as he picked up Jaune's book. He scanned it for a few moments before returning the book to him. He lied his head back against the wall. His body showed he was calm. A feeling that even for Jaune show a bit of aberrance. He couldn't complain. Actually, there haven't been much complaints since his last interaction with Iva.

The day after Iva tapped into his messages, Blake already knew after discovering the cracked, crushed cell phone on the sidewalk. She wasn't that upset, but told Jaune that he owed her a year's worth of ice cream from the University's ice cream parlor. Even those rumors of the best tasting ice cream spread in her region.

Aside from that, she was fine. As an extra precaution, she purchased Jaune a prepaid cell phone. Instead of using his name, she used her father's name since he had a strong disdain of technology. When asking her about the cell phone bill of his current phone, she wasn't fazed. _Don't worry about it, Jaune. Everything is covered. All I care about is your safety._ Blake was a caring person. An introvert, which was strange for the blonde. Why would the brunette go all out for a friend. During their Beacon days, there weren't particularly close. Why now of all times? He tried not to compose his mind to the basic template of her crushing on him. She was being a generous friend and nothing more.

Speaking of Iva, there hasn't been any contact from her since. He has since decided to abandon 4chan. It wasn't easy for it was concluded memories of the good times with his comrades. What made Jaune grateful that Lie Ren decided to deactivate his account too. _Jaune, you are my former leader. You are my confidant. Overall, my best friend. You are a brother to me and I love you. Whatever we have to do to prevent this woman from coming close to you again, we will do what's best._

The investigation was currently at a standstill. Despite Jaune's fingerprints being present at the scene of the crime, his airtight alibi checked him out. The police used his PM and transcripts with this Iva/[jkab], but it led to his computer. The only conclusion the police could gather was that it was a hacker that pirated his account. They offered to return his electronics, but he denied, telling them that it could donated to charity.

Jaune crossed his legs. "It's gonna be a tight bunk between the four of us." Blake didn't have any obligations. Since she was good company and an awesome cook, Jaune offered her to stay with them until the end of the summer. Of course, there were certain arrangements. Jaune knew that the spare bedroom would come in handy at some point.

Lie Ren tapped his knees with his fingers as he searched for a decent manga book. He was due to work in less than an hour, but Jaune called him to come over and relax with him. He scratched his head as he finally registered what Jaune had mention. As well as finding a good book.

" _Aki Sora,_ " the brunette said aloud. "Anyway, it shouldn't be that bad. Nora and Blake can share beds. I got the living room. And of course, your bedroom is your domain."

"Your emphasis on Nora, Blake, and bed implies that you want some kind of lesbian experience." He teasingly raised his eyebrows. He connected his thumb and index finger with one hand, using the other index finger to insert through the ring.

"Like a wise man told me," said Lie Ren while raising his finger.

"Tell me old wise Lie Ren," said Jaune teasingly.

Lie Ren got off and planted his knees on the desk chair. He tapped his hand as if he was a conductor. He patted his chest lightly to have a bass kind of tone.

 _You see, I was walking in the park this one afternoon. And as I was approaching the lake, I saw this cheese sitting on top of a board. I looked to myself as "that looks like some good looking cheese." I went to it, smelling and my mouth watered. The moment I put my mouth on the cheese, SMACK! You know what it was, Jaune?_

"Tell me, preacher," said Jaune. Jaune tucked his hands into his stomach. He tried covering his laughter to not disturb the others neighboring the cubicle. "Tell me, old wise one."

"Rat trap," confirmed Lie Ren. He made a glare at Jaune as he returned to his preacher's voice.

 _The moral of the story, watch yourselves. These girls try to hypnotize you with their lesbianism, booty shorts, and twerking for an amigo. Next thing, you know, they are pregnant. Asking you for money. These girls are cheese on the board._

Jaune loved when Lie Ren gives his urban anecdotes. He was grateful. He felt that he could be himself again.

"Anyway," said Lie Ren as he returned to his normal voice and sitting down on the desk chair. "I am much as excited for the fun adventures we can have. What should call ourselves?"

"We're not in high school anymore."

"Doesn't matter. I mean there is B, N, J, and R. What words can that make?"

"Binger?" Jaune smirked while holding his hands as if he was chugging alcohol.

"Fuck you, dude," laughed Lie Ren as he looked to his _Aki Sora_ manga. "I get drunk that last time…."

"And the time before that and the time before that."

"At least I have three sets of hands to help me out."

"Whatever you say," said Jaune as he reached for his soda.

Lie Ren snorted while wiping his nose with his hands. "I know we tried not to say it much, but it seems like Iva has left you alone."

Jaune looked at Lie Ren with strong intent. He tried to rationalize himself. Lie Ren wasn't in his position. Therefore sympathy was his safest bet. "I am unsure, uncertain. Frankly, I am not caring."

"Aside from that potential murder she might have done, has she done anything else."

"According to my parents, nothing has been taken out. My sisters have been great."

"A localized thing."

"Just. And I hope it remains like that."

"What reason why she picked you of all people."

"I wonder if that's how the blacks felt with slavery. Or the Japanese with Pearl Harbor. Or the Americans with Vietnam…."

"I gotcha. I gotcha. It's still a touchy subject," said Lie Ren apologetically. He rubbed the back of his neck, which he did whenever he put himself in an uncomfortable position. "Sorry."

Jaune sighed. "No, no, I am sorry. It's not your fault. You are being a concerning friend is all." He looked at the ceiling, digging himself deeper into the bean bag chair. "Since getting a new laptop and using Blake's father IP as a cover-up, things have been fine. Awkward, but fine. I have even started another imageboard site. It's 8chan!"

"Yeah, I know what's that about," said Lie Ren. "Oum in heaven. You can't get enough of those imageboard sites."

Jaune crossed his legs. "What can I say? I am a nerd indeed." He looked at the floor, twiddling his thumbs. "That was probably one decent thing my aunt Salem done that wasn't in the least bit traumatizing."

Lie Ren averted his eyes. Jaune already knew that Lie Ren had a question about _her._ "It's okay, Lie Ren. Tell me what you want to know."

"Not too much." The words came out like a gust of wind. As if Jaune opened the portal to obviosity of Lie Ren's curiosity. "Just what happened to her."

"My mom came home early." Jaune scratched under his leg. It made a harsh sound with his fingers touching his jeans. "I think it was because she failed to contact my mom or something. I don't really remember the reason."

"Was she caught in the act?"

He nodded his head. "Mom caught her on top of me. She pushed her off and started to kick her ass." A self-deprecating laughter came from his chapped lips. Jaune reminded himself to apply lip balm to it. "I lied there, watching my Mom hitting her."

"What happened?"

"She told me to call 911. I did. She gets arrested. She goes to jail. That's about it."

"How long?"

"She got about 20 years in prison. She plays her cards right, she can be out in 15."

"No. How long ago did it happen."

Jaune let out a slight smile. "The day before my eleventh birthday."

Lie Ren's phone alarm alerted him that it was time for work. Jaune took that as his cue to make his leave also. The duo left the University Manga Cafe and made his way to the pizza restaurant. The establishment was on his way back to the apartment.

"If you want, dude, I can make you some pizza. On me," said Lie Ren as he was carrying his backpack.

Jaune shook his head. "I am good, homie. Getting sick of pizza, if you ask me. I wouldn't mind getting some of Blake's cabbage stew."

Lie Ren burst in a grin. "I think Blake got this man on lockdown."

Jaune turned to Lie Ren. "Blake?" He spat out a raspberry. "Dude, no! If anything, Blake likes you."

Lie Ren stopped, which made Jaune stopped. "Me, Blake?" He slapped his hand grinning. "Dude, Blake and I are nowhere compatible."

"But, I thought you were having connections with Blake. I thought you liked her."

He flushed. "Granted, Blake Belladonna is a gem, a beauty. A sexy Faunus, too." He continued walking. "My friend, Blake is not my type. Granted, once again, I love her cooking. She smiles great, but I don't care for her."

Jaune appeared flabbergasted. "Have I misread signals. The way you gave Blake a look when we were eating or having interactions."

"Dude, I give that look to anybody I enjoy good company. To you, to Nora, to anybody." He let out a sigh. "You're the closest thing to family. Us being together now is a reunion to me. I love this. It's something I don't want to end." He wrapped his fist tightly, showing a strain face. "And I hope that Iva don't ruin that."

"Lie Ren."

"Sorry. I know I rarely display my emotions." He put his hand on Jaune's heart. "What we have, I love it. You are like a brother I never have. Blake is like a sister. I know there is strong chemistry, but we are just friends. Nora...well, Nora is my everything. She is all that I have, Jaune."

"Lie Ren."

"Inviting me to stay with you excited me. I had nowhere to go. I could've stayed at school, but I wanted a family," said Lie Ren. "You are my family."

Jaune went and strongly embraced his best friend. "You are my family, too."

"Thanks, man."

"Thank me later after you order us a double pepperoni with extra sauce."

"Thought you weren't in a mood for pizza."

"Funny thing about moods."

The pair pumped fist as they parted ways. Jaune waved Lie Ren a final farewell as he was heading for his apartment. He knew he was going to be alone. He didn't expect Blake to be back home anytime soon. She told them that she had to head back home for some personal business. The way she sounded that morning, it was very urgent.

Blake was the heir of the Belladonna dynasty. Her father made a living of selling Irish Crystal glasses and turning it into a business. Although a former member of the White Fang enterprise, the money he allocated turned into a successful business. So, it didn't surprise the blonde that Blake was at an age to handle such affairs. Might as well since it was the two of them.

Blake doesn't like talking about her mother. It happened a couple of years ago. It was during their junior year at Beacon. Her mother decided to leave them. No note, no reason for her leaving. The next contact she had with her mother when her lawyer presented her father with the divorce papers.

That led Blake to a period of doubt, despair, and heartbreak. Jaune believed that if it wasn't for him and his friends comforting Blake, then Blake would've never finished high school.

He discovered a suicide note in her drawer. He took it to the woods and burned it.

It was a quarter after six in the evening when he had arrived to the apartment. He placed his backpack on the couch and went into the kitchen. He smelled the faint English muffins with blueberry jam and scrambled eggs. He told himself to clean the smear on the counter after Lie Ren accidentally spilled honey mustard. He smiled, allowing himself that pleasure. He refused to have that Iva girl destroy that.

 _Blake and Lie Ren give me a feeling that everything is going to be alright._

He cooked Blake's leftover cabbage stew with some leftover buffalo wings he ate earlier. He jumped on the couch to find his Hulu. Since he had already watch _Mysterious Girlfriend X, Claymore, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni,_ and _Sweet Blue Flowers._ With the latter, it was much of Lie Ren's idea as he wanted some appreciation of yuri culture. Jaune decided to turn over to the other side of the couch. He wasn't sure if Lie Ren had any deposits hanging around from his personal bank.

Instead of watching anime, he decided to watch _The Wire._ His father turned himto a fan. He was watching the part when detectives discovered the identity ofdrug lord, Barksdale. Before he knew it, Jaune went into a slumber.

* * *

' _Auntie Salem?'_

' _Yes, sweetie.'_

' _What are we doing?'_

' _We are playing our special game.'_

' _Does that mean we have to get naked. I don't feel right.'_

' _Trust me, sweetie. This is the only way we can play.'_

' _I don't like this, Aunt Salem. Can we play something else?'_

' _I told you dear. This is a special game for me and you. You are special to me, Jauney dear.'_

' _My mother told me that that is a no-no area.'_

' _It's only okay with adult's permission. Do you love me, Jauney?'_

' _I do love you, Auntie.'_

' _Do you trust me?'_

' _I do.'_

' _Then allow me to help you with the game. Let's check on your sword, sweetie.'_

' _Why are you touching me there?'_

' _That is your sword, honey.'_

' _It feels very weird.'_

' _It feels weird on your first try. It will get better.'_

' _What are you doing with yourself, Auntie?'_

' _I am the sheath, remember. I am putting your sword into my sheath.'_

' _It looks like something Mommy and Daddy do when they are alone.'_

' _This is different. We are playing a special game. It's kinda like that, but we are having fun. That's for making babies.'_

' _I am feeling weird, Auntie.'_

' _It's okay. Just keeping doing that. You are making me feel good.'_

' _I thought the sword was to be in place. I don't like this.'_

' _You are making it fit, dear. You are doing a great job. I am not too heavy on you?'_

' _No, ma'am. My stomach is starting to hurt. My no-no is starting to feel weird.'_

' _That's natural. You will feel a tingling sensation. Trust me, you will love it.'_

' _I am feeling funny. I feel like I am going to pee.'_

' _That's just you cleaning out my sheath. It's normal. Whatever you're feeling, let it out.'_

' _Auntie Salem, something is happening! Mommy! Daddy!'_

' _That's it, sweetie. You are going to be a fine swordsman!'_

' _I am going to pee.'_

' _Let it out, sweetie. I will take it all, Jauney!'_

' _I can't stop. I am peeing.'_

' _MMMM, let it out, dear.'_

' _Salem, Jaune, what's going on. You didn't answer my call...what in the hell are you doing to my son?'_

' _Mommy?'_

* * *

Jaune opened his eyes. He felt his head was spinning from the nightmare of the incident in his childhood. A tremendous roar of a headache impacted him. He sat up, seeing that the television continued with his shows. It didn't matter as he staggered to his bedroom. He reached for the drawer to retrieve his medication. He took two pills followed by a glass of leftover water he left on the table.

He felt wetness on his nose. He wiped it with his sleeve, only to see a shade of red on it. He went to the bathroom that he saw that he had a nosebleed. He took some toilet paper on applied it in his nose. He took deep breaths, reminding himself that everything was going to be alright.

 _If anytime to bring memories, why this one? Why now? Why now?_

He took another drink of water before walking to his computer. He logged in to his 8chan page. He was fortunate that this time, he actually knew the moderator of this site. He went by the name of _[epin]._ His nickname was Ozzy. He wasn't sure of his real name since his Freshman Composition class had over a hundred students. Ozzy was responsible for putting him on 8chan. As far as he knew, Ozzy was a decent person. He majored in Computer Science and wanted to make his career into a business. Like a typical teenager, he was obsessed with women. Ozzy showed him the ropes of using 8chan and it wasn't long when Jaune became used to the site.

He decided to use tonight's episode of _The Wire_ under the subject of _Series That Need to Have a Movie._ As he was thinking of ideas to write, he clicked on the homepage. Something caught his eye under the new member category.

 _We would like to welcome [jkab] to 8chan!_

His blood went cold for a few seconds. He began to hesitate. The feelings of peace were coming to a close after seeing the return of Iva on the page. _Impossible! There is no way she knows I am here. I have a new username. I am not using the same IP address. Please, Oum, let it be a coincidence._

His initial thought was to tell Ozzy about _[jkab]_ and how her profile harassed him in the past. Also, she was under investigation by the police after a murder over a few weeks ago. However, his fear of telling Ozzy would provoke death on Ozzy. Jaune didn't want to be responsible for another casualty.

He remained calm. He tried to rationalize the fact the imageboards such as 8chan was common. It was a coincidence that _[jkab]_ would be on it the same time he was. As for assurance, he clicked on her page.

Same as 4chan: cutesy, girly, and a Brony nightmare from Hell.

He read her profile status. _[jkab] is excited to be on this page. Especially when I know my hubby is somewhere around here. He thinks I doesn't know, but I do know. I will let him dangle for awhile. But not too long. Anyway, feel free to talk and we can have fun!_

He felt something touching his shoulder.

Jaune jumped, falling back to his bed. He let out a scream for a few moments until it was muffled. Once he gained composure, he saw the origin of the hand.

It was Blake Belladonna.

* * *

 _ **To be continued….**_

 _ **A/N: Hey, guys! I am sorry to leave you at that cliffhanger. Stay tuned to find out on the next chapter of connected_by_your_strings. I am very impressed that people like my newest series.**_

 ** _Also, we thought it would be funny to throw some humor to this series. We don't have enough stories in which there can be periods of normalcy._**

 _ **More to come soon. I am actually considering of making it its' own entity after the fifth chapter. Stay tuned! Happy Reading!**_

 _ **A/N: I want to thank my girlfriend, [thegirlfriendoftheauthor] for writing this chapter. I was more of the mouthpiece telling her what she needed to write.**_


	5. fifth entry

Blake kept her eyes narrowed, saying nothing. Jaune's rampant breathing continued. Stunned by the surprised appearance of Blake. Their eyes locked on each for a moment. The pregnant silence continued. Jaune was in midair as the chair was lifted between his desk and his bed. Blake was using her strength to hold on to him. Her amber eyes staring into his.

For a moment, Jaune's heart skipped a beat.

"Easy now." Her voice was calm as she broke the silence. She tilted her body weight to put Jaune back into his sitting position. Her hand was covering his mouth. "Easy, easy. Take a deep breath and let your head clear." She removed her hand from his mouth. Jaune took sharp breaths. He wasn't sure if was alarmed because of Iva or because of Blake's sudden appearance.

Iva.

His eyes bolted to the computer. Iva's profile. It was gone. Nothing more than a blank screen display a 404 Not Found symbol.

"The power is out." Jaune turned around to see Blake was sitting on his bed. She leaned back as she crossed her legs. "The power was out when I came home."

"How long ago?" Jaune managed to say while he was still panting.

"Maybe fifteen minutes or so."

Jaune checked his surroundings. Darkness. Yet again, that was the norm in the household. He kept the lights out in his room, save for the laptop. He checked his clock on his cell phone. It was a few minutes after eleven in the evening. He sighed through his nose, scratching his head, and returning his glance to Blake.

"I've tried calling your name, but you didn't answer," said Blake. "I've also tried calling you before I came here. I've gotten some groceries and wouldn't mind needing a strong man to help me with it."

"Do you still need help," asked Jaune, trying not to change the subject.

She shook her head, sticking her fingers to her chest. "Strength and agility reigns supreme with this lady Belladonna." A bit of humor didn't hurt, Jaune thought. He reached for his cell phone, but didn't see any signs of Blake calling. It didn't faze him. Living in a small college town, cell coverage was more spotty than a pre-pubescent teenager with acne, goes from place to place.

"Do you need any help with your groceries," asked Jaune, closing his laptop. "It might be difficult for the power outage, but I know my way."

She giggled. "Never you worry." She displayed her cell phone with a flashlight app. "This app, like Oum, is always there for me."

"I wish he can be here to stop these scare tactics," he said as he stood up. He felt the stiffness in his ankles, reminding him to put ointment on it later. "I'm not twenty-one yet and my life is already is getting its' ass kicked."

As they walked to the door, Jaune paused. "By the way, how were you able to get in?"

"The supe' let me in."

He shook his head. "Right, right. Remind me tomorrow to get you a key for this apartment. I'm starting to be a bad host."

She touched his shoulder. It was a delicate touch, but it alarmed the hairs on the back of his neck. "You can pay me back by helping with the groceries. Hopefully, they won't spoil if the power doesn't come back on soon."

Jaune was in disbelief of the assortment and abundance of groceries that the brunette had in the kitchen. They could open a small restaurant on the food they had.

"Oum in heaven," said Jaune. "Are you trying to open a business?" He whistled, seeing the grocery bags from the kitchen counter to their kitchen table in the dining room. "Like you brought out the entire grocery store."

"Just wanted to be sure that my boys weren't going hungry," she said enthusiastically.

"Like you have something for every food group. Jesus," whistled Jaune as he unwrapped grocery bags.

He heard Blake going into the cabinets. She kneeled to reach for the candle. "You have a lighter, Jaune?"

"Yeah, in my back pocket," he answered.

"I'll get it," she said.

Blake came from behind Jaune. Once again, his breath labored when her hands made contact with his back pocket. A wave of emotions came from the pit of his stomach. He swallowed a lump as she retrieved the lighter.

"Thanks," she said.

"Don't mention it," answered Jaune as he put some boxes of pasta in the cabinet.

A wave of her perfume entered his nose. It smelled sweet, like a moist flower. He was well acquainted with that scent.

That was perfume he purchased for Pyrrha on her birthday.

"You smell very nice," said Jaune.

"Oh, thanks," said Blake.

She walked away into the living room. Jaune was putting up some more groceries.

"Oh, by the way, Lie Ren called. He said that he wasn't coming home any time soon," said Blake as she was lighting candles in the living room.

"Where is he going," asked Jaune.

"Our Renny has a date." Her voice was high pitched. As if she was very excited. Jaune's hands tremble a little. Knowing that he was going to be alone with Blake. It wasn't his first time being alone with her, let alone other women. He and Blake spend time together during the day. They played video games, played board games, read manga, and sat outside smoking weed. Lie Ren would come through and joined them during his off days or when he came home from work. However, the situation was concerning him. Lights out, candles.

"You're getting quiet on me, Jaune," said Blake as she returned to the kitchen, holding on to the lighter. "Did you hear what I've said?"

"I did. I wanted to know where is he going? Who he is going with?"

She placed her hands on her hips. She giggled, covering her mouth in the process. "You are sounding like a dad right now. Well, he called me and said that he was going on a date. He had met a pretty girl." She narrowed her eyebrows. "An older girl."

Jaune grabbed the empty bags as he put them in the cabinet for its miscellaneous uses. "An older girl? That sounds like Ren. What surprises me is that he didn't call me, let alone text me. This is normally something that is unprecedented." He put his hands on the counter, thinking about the abberance of Lie Ren's behavior.

She helped him put the rest of the items in the refrigerator. "Lie Ren said he tried calling you near an hour ago, but you didn't answer." She closed the refrigerator door. "Maybe the cell towers aren't acting right since the power is out."

"I am quite surprised the power is out. Then yet, it is the country. Probably a brown out from the heat."

"Or some drunken bastard crashing into a telephone pole on his way to a hoedown."

Jaune mockingly performed a bowlegged cowboy stance. Blake clapped to his rhythm. After a moment, they heard the sound of rain pouring from the sky.

"Well, at least we can get some cool air tonight," said Blake. "I am going to open the patio door."

"Go for it," said Jaune as he concluded the rest of Blake's groceries. He was finished. He was rubbing his eye while walking into the living room. The cool air entered the room, displaying relief to his skin. Candles surrounded the room. Blake placed candles in every corner of the living room. The rest was centered on their coffee table. He didn't see Blake, assuming that she was in her bedroom.

Something caught his eye. He saw bags that certainly didn't fit with the groceries. Those type of bags were even too fancy and expensive with the cheap, reusable ones.

" _Gucci. Seiko. Saks Fifth Avenue. Nordstrom. GameStop?_ " Jaune said under his breath. He heard the door open and saw Blake stepping out into her pajamas.

"While I was back home earlier with my father, I went and did some shopping," said Blake. She went to the couch, opening the bags to show him her items. Jaune gave her her time. It was out of respect for he never cared when people displayed their items. It was nothing personal, he didn't care for it.

"Here are some things for you." Blake reached into the _GameStop_ bag and gave it to him. He bowed, accepting the bag to open it. His eyes widened when seeing his gift. It was _Fortnite_. Along with it was Playstation online card. "I thought since your birthday is a few days, I decided to give this to you early."

Jaune blushed, surprised of receiving such a gift. "Just a $10 gift card would have been fine. Thanks!"

She smiled. "You're welcome. Think nothing of it. Oh, yeah. I have this for you, too." Jaune's stomach dropped when Blake passed him the bag from Seiko. It was a small bag. He pulled out a box. Inside, it was a silver brand Seiko watch. It screamed expensive.

"I saw it while I was shopping and thought of you, Jaune," she said while blushing. "I thought it would look good on you. You are at an age where you need to start looking presentable, young man."

Jaune had always wanted that watch. It was a watch that his father had. His eyes averted to the floor. Two things filled his mind. Why go out of the way to buy that watch? How did she know the specific brand?

He didn't want to overthink. Iva/jkab was enough of its own. "Thank you for this, Blake," he said calmly. "This means a lot that you are thinking of me." Blake's smile faded when he put the gifts back into her lap. "Unfortunately, I can't take this."

Her face softened. It looked as if she was offended.

"I am sorry, Blake," said Jaune as he sat across from her on the floor.

"You don't like it," questioned Blake. Jaune knew her voice was faltering.

"No, no," he said. "I love them. I love it all. It is just. It..it..is just you are doing too much for me." He crossed his legs, placing his hands on his lap. "The laptop, the video game consoles." He held his fingers, displaying the peace sign. " _Two_ new cell phones. You are using your father's name with this phone and the laptop. You even got me a new modem from the internet. Blake, I appreciate everything, I mean everything, but this is too much. Especially for a guy like me."

There was a pregnant silence, with the exception of the rain pouncing onto the balcony. Her amber eyes softened, staring at Jaune for a few moments. She sighed, closing her eyes. She stood up and walked away from the couch. As she was heading toward her bedroom, she turned around.

"The 'supe was kind enough to allow a maintenance man to install a screen for you on nights like this. I am going to slip into my room to get some weed. I don't want the ice cream to melt so I will be eating some. I will be on the patio." Her voice was calm as if she wasn't fazed or refused to respond to his feelings. "Feel free to come and chill with me, if you want." She went into her bedroom and closed the door.

Jaune stood alone, caught in the darkness. He knew it wasn't easy when trying to read girl's feelings. His sisters have mentioned to him on numerous occasions. Pyrrha mentioned to him on his poor reading of girls. He couldn't forget the day when they were on their way to prom. _Girls are like books, Jaune. You can read it, believe what it says and close it. Or, you can be analytical, break it down, and try to find supportive evidence of it all._ Maybe tonight was another example of what his former girlfriend was mentioning. He cursed under his breath. The last thing he wanted to do was to hurt Blake's feelings.

Blake was being generous. She was being kind and sincere. She was responsible for paying his bail. She was doing things that any friend would do to protect each other. Guilt consumed his mind.

He stood up and went to his bedroom. He swallowed his pride as he went inside of his drawer for a pair of pajamas he hasn't worn since his high school days. 'Hopefully, this would make her feel better,' he said to himself.

* * *

About ten minutes later, Jaune stepped out into the living room. As she mentioned earlier, she was sitting outside on the patio. The sound of music was coming from her cell phone. She was listening to Sade.

Jaune swallowed the lump as he went to the patio. He slid it open and to his surprise, Blake was there with a smile on her face.

She burst in laughter. "I...can't...believe that you...still...have...that...bunny suit?" She slapped her knee a few times as Jaune sat across from her. He took one of the pillows to lean back against the wall.

"Ha! Ha! Ha!" Jaune responded sarcastically. He took the marijuana from Blake and took a few puffs. He exhaled the smoke into the night. He tapped the ashes, returning it to Blake. "I am happy to see and hear you feeling better."

She interjected with a glare. "I wasn't even upset." She took a smoke from her marijuana. "I just wanted to show some generosity." She took a spoonful of ice cream. She put it in her mouth. "I wanted to show you that there are people that care about you." She got another spoonful. "Come over here and get you some."

Jaune crawled where Blake put a spoonful of mint chocolate ice cream into his mouth. _An indirect kiss._ "It's good," he said as he returned to his post.

"Friends help friends out," said Blake. "That is the code. Or my code at least."

"I am sorry, Blake," said Jaune. "Don't find it as a sense of being an insult." He took another smoke of his marijuana. "I just never have a person _this_ good to me. I'm nowhere near warranted or worthy of this kind of praise."

She took another bite of her ice cream. "What makes you think you are not?"

"Blake, look at me. I am 19 years old. I attend a small private university in the middle of the sticks." He took another smoke. "The only reason why I am here is that this is one of the few colleges that would take a cheater."

Blake kept quiet, taking another bite of ice cream.

"My life is average. I come from a poor farmer's family. I am the first to start college. This apartment isn't shit, excuse my language. I don't have the finest car. It's lonely here. I don't have any real friends to speak of over here. My parents are struggling as it is to pay my rent here. I feel like a burden, Blake. I feel like a fucking burden." He took a smoke of his weed. "Now, this Iva comes and turns my life upside down. She has already killed someone. She is harassing the shit out of me. She had me arrested. I'm afraid that I am putting your lives in jeopardy." He saw that his hot tears were flowing from his tightened eyes. "I am a wreck. Now, you are taking care of me. You are buying me things. I have never felt this good in awhile. Somebody is being good to me, but why? Why? Why? Why me, Blake? I am not worthy of this."

He wiped the tears from his eyes. Blake gave him a blank stare.

"I wish I can say I came from a poor farmer's family. At least, it would give me a reason to learn some humility." She spoke calmly, but sternly. "You must've forgotten about my almost taking my own life, Jaune. You must've forgotten about the suicide note I put in my dresser. You were the one to find it. You were the one that really suspected my pain." She wiped her tears. "I, too, thought I was living in a perfect bubble. Blake Belladonna, the daughter of Ghira and Kali Belladonna. My father, a former member of the White Fang organization turned owner and distributor of imported Irish Crystal. My father, who eventually became a self-made millionaire. My father, who had made connections with the outside world and those formerly of the organization, made the Belladonna name on the map. I couldn't go to a store without seeing my name imprinted onto glasses."

She took another smoke of her weed, moving her ice cream aside. "You have given me facts, Jaune. Just facts. Stop with the self-fucking pity. Let me tell you something, Jaune Arc. Just because I have money doesn't me an Oum damned thing. Pity is pity. There is no discrimination against it. You can find love from the cesspit of a homeless shelter instead of a mansion." She hit the table as she bit her lip. "My father got into contact with a former member Adam Taurus. Just thinking of his name pisses me off. Well, it was through Adam that my father got into contact with a woman named Cinder Fall. Cinder Fall happened to be his rival of selling Irish Crystal as well."

She took another sigh. "Let's just say that my father and Cinder discussed more things than glasses." She looked at the rainy night. "It wasn't long until my mother dearest found out. She went ballistic, Jaune. I don't want to get into details. My mother left. She went to her villa. I haven't seen much of her since. I decided to stay with my father."

"Why?" It was the first time Jaune's spoke. His brain was scrambled for he wanted to know why did Blake stay with her father.

"My mother presented a perfect face in front of people. A devoted wife, a devoted mother loving her doting daughter." Her eyes narrowed to the floor. "Behind closed doors, my mom was different. Everything had to be perfect. If it wasn't perfect, then it was trash. I was called trash. I was called wretched, crooked, worthless." She sighed heavily as she passed Jaune her weed. "My mother cared about herself for the sake of the family."

"What made you want to commit suicide," asked Jaune.

She let out a small crooked smile. "A whirlwind of things. My father got Cinder pregnant. Word spread through school and I was bullied. I kept it quiet. You guys didn't know. It was more of an inner circle thing. The other reason was this. I got a call from my mother. The first time in awhile. I told her that all I wanted was her love. I told her all I wanted was for her to love me. Her answer was, 'if you love me, cut deeper.' That's that. I was trapped in confusion." She showed her upper arms. Jaune's stomach churned when seeing self-inflicted wounds. "I used to be a cutter, Jaune. Throughout the stress and the turmoil, it helped me ease the pain. It felt like I was in control. Nothing could stop me. That was what she was mentioning, Jaune." She put her sleeve down.

"Blake, I am so sorry," he said.

"Don't ever think you aren't worthy of anything," she said to him. "Because there is somebody who is worse than you." She grabbed a spoon and took a bite of her ice cream. She took another spoon and gave it to Jaune. Jaune took a bite.

Jaune hugged Blake, but he still didn't feel satisfied with her response. He asked once more after breaking the embrace. "Is that the reason why you are giving me stuff?"

She responded. "After all of this, you are still thinking about that?"

"I just don't want you to think I am using you."

"You're not."

"What are you gaining out of this?"

"Nothing. Can a person be generous?"

"I agree. Paying for dinner. Buying them a ticket. Blake, you have been taking care of me to the point I feel guilty. I am not a user by any means."

She fell silent.

"I'm sorry. I just...I just...you're my friend. You don't have to buy my friendship."

"It is because...it is because…"

"Tell me, Blake."

"I don't want to see you hurt is all. You came for me like I am doing for you." "I wouldn't go all out if I didn't care about you."

Blake grabbed Jaune and kissed him. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. Jaune felt her moist kisses, tasting her ice cream in the process. She allowed her tongue to enter his. After a few moments, they broke the kiss. Jaune stood stunned. Blake was panting. She wiped the saliva from her face.

"Blake. I didn't have any idea you thought of me that way."

"You're so dense, that's why. I have thought about you for the longest of time. You have always been on my mind. Even back when you and Pyrrha were dating."

He fell back on his end of the wall. He panted as Blake crawled to his direction. "I don't know what to say."

"Don't say nothing else. Just kiss me."

Blake placed her body on his lap. He closed his eyes as he felt her lips touching his. He tried to resist. This was wrong. This wasn't right, the blonde thought. Nevertheless, the smell of her perfume, the taste of her lips went against his judgment. Despite his confused feelings, he allowed Blake to his will.

"Even if you think of me as only a friend. Even if you don't. But please, even for tonight, think of me and only me. Treat me as if I am the only important person in this world." She turned out the music, stubbed out the marijuana, and took Jaune by her hand.

"Your bedroom or my bedroom," asked Blake with alluring eyes.

"My bedroom," answered Jaune.

* * *

The moment Jaune and Blake entered the bedroom, a swell of emotion came within.

" _I don't have a condom," said Jaune._

" _I am on the pill. Don't worry," said Blake. "I want it all. Your warmth, your everything. I am a bit hesitant. This is my first time."_

" _Stop it, Blake. What the hell I am thinking? You don't have to do this."_

" _No, I won't. You're not giving yourself second thoughts."_

" _Blake, you should save this for the person you love."_

" _Tada, you are it."_

" _No, it should be mutual love."_

" _Just shut up, Jaune."_

" _Blake."_

" _Just shut the hell up. Just stop talking."_

" _Blake."_

" _Since you don't believe my love for you, I will force it on you."_

" _Blake."_

" _I love you, Jaune. I don't want to say that word. Please, don't make me say that word."_

" _Blake?"_

" _Yes, my love. I'm sorry. But nothing you say or do will change my mind."_

" _Just be gentle, please?"_

" _Thank you. I love you, Jaune."_

" _I care for you as well, Blake."_

Jaune felt the wetness of her blood dripping around his dick. She kissed him, biting into his neck, clawing into his back. She murmured under her breath, telling herself "I needed this" or "I wanted this" or "This is for you, Jaune."

A wave of emotions came as for a moment, he imagined Pyrrha. The brunette disappeared showing a redhead. Tears came from his eyes.

"Take me away, my prince," said Pyrrha

He took control, grinding himself into her. Blake knew the intensity. She knew he was thinking of Pyrrha. She didn't care. She wanted him. She wanted nothing more but him.

"Come into the deepest part of me, Jaune. I want to feel your warmth," cried Blake.

Jaune emptied his load inside of her.

His thrusting, his grunting stopped. The duo stared into each other's eyes. She displayed tears as he wiped them off. He wanted to speak. She wouldn't allow him. They share one final kiss before going to sleep.

* * *

It was the sound of his fan that woke him up. He sat up to see the blinking alarm clock on his dresser. At least it was safe to say that the power has been restored. He wasn't exhausted, surprising to say the least. Especially after the encounter that he had with Blake last night.

He wasn't surprised to see her gone. Knowing for Blake, she went back to town taking care of her father's affairs. It wasn't easy being a child, he concluded as he stepped out of bed. He didn't even want to look at the sheets. As he was scratching his underarms, he knew he would be sending them to the cleaners sometime today.

He tried his hardest not to compare last night to his encounter with his Aunt Salem. At least there was some compassion with Blake. That was really the only word he can say about it at this point. Just compassion.

There was a note on the refrigerator. It was written by Blake. There was a family emergency back home. She wasn't coming back for a couple of days. She left some money to buy some groceries if needed. She gave him a few dollars for other things. She said that she loved him. Jaune felt guilty for allowing his hormones to get the best of him. He hoped that it doesn't mess up their relationship.

He smelled a hint of her perfume before putting the paper back on the table. As he was pulling out a box of cereal, he heard the sound of the door unlocking. He knew it had to be Lie Ren.

Lie Ren was humming a Michael Jackson tune as he entered the apartment. He closed the door.

"Hajimemashite," said Lie Ren as he put his backpack on the dining room chair. He had some mail in his hand. He was murmuring bills to himself before pulling out a postcard. He displayed it to Jaune. Jaune nodded his head as he found a spot at the table.

"Hello from Ireland," said Jaune. "She's getting closer." It wasn't long until Nora's arrival. She was to be expected in a couple of days.

"I know, right," said Lie Ren. Jaune looked at Lie Ren, knowing that Lie Ren wanted some cereal. He gave Lie Ren the spoon as he took a bite of his cereal.

"Thanks."

"You're very comfortable with everything."

"Indeed. The product of exploration of environments."

"Yeah, yeah," said Jaune as he took another bite of his cereal. "So, how's last night?"

"Last night," retorted Lie Ren as he was pouring a bowl of cereal for himself.

"Blake said that you were out with a girl."

"Jaune, you fucking with me?"

"No. I'm serious. Blake said you went out with a girl."

Lie Ren took a seat. He took a bite of his cereal. "Dude, I've spent all night cleaning out the kitchen. We had a grease spill and the power being out didn't help."

Jaune dropped the spoon, causing milk to fly on the table. _Blake wouldn't do that. She wouldn't lie to me. She wouldn't do such a thing._

Lie Ren smiled. "I'm just kidding with you. Me and her went to the Manga Cafe. Since it's the only thing open after midnight." He pointed the spoon at Jaune teasingly. "I had you shook for a moment, didn't I?"

"Fuck you, dude," said Jaune. "Y'all gonna stop scaring me with this bullshit."

"Lighten up, dude," said Lie Ren. "I've tried calling you last night, but you didn't answer the phone." He took another bite. "Aren't you going to ask me about the girl?"

"I am a little mad about earlier," pouted Jaune.

"I have two boxes of double pepperoni with extra sauce with your name on it today," he said teasingly. That made Jaune smile. "Whatever, dude. Yeah, sure. Tell me about her. At least it is an actual date instead of with your hand."

"Ha! Ha! Ha!" Lie Ren responded with sarcasm. Lie Ren told Jaune that during his lunch break, he was approached by an older woman. She was a redhead. The pair had a brief conversation before she asked him out on a date.

"So, you guys went to the Manga Cafe," asked Jaune.

"Yeah, it's the only thing that's open in this town."

"But the power was out."

"Not on our end. I did hear about some outages. I don't know."

"So, what did you guys do?"

"Well, we had some drinks. That was about it."

"That's it? No action at all."

Lie Ren scratched his face. "Funny thing, Jaune. I actually took your advice. I only had one drink. And that was a glass of wine. I don't know if I was tired or what, I feel asleep. When I woke up, she was gone."

"A great way to have a date," he snickered. "Did you at least get her number?"

"She waited on me after I finished work. Didn't see the point."

Jaune laughed. "At least you can say you went on an actual date." Jaune stood up and patted Ren on his shoulder. He was washing the bowl in the skin. "You know your hand is still available."

"Whatever, dude." Lie Ren stood up. He was heading out of the kitchen. "You have class today?"

"Just one. Then I am free."

"You feel like going for a drive later? I need something else to see instead of corn and trees and more corn."

"Yeah, sure."

"Cool! I am going to take a siesta."

"Be my guest. I am gonna get dressed for class."

Lie Ren waved his hand as he got his blankets and his pillow.

* * *

After taking a quick shower, he was getting dressed for class. Wanting to be sure if his Astrology class was happening today since his professor tended to cancel at the last minute, he opened his laptop to check his email.

While his email was loading, he decided to take a peek at 8chan. He clicked on the tab. He saw that he had some messages. He clicked to them and saw it was from Iva.

Iva/[jkab] finally made her presence known.

 _Jaune, what the fuck did you just do?_

 _Did you have the nerve to play me like this?_

 _Answer me! Oum damn it._

 _Was it my fault? Did I not love you enough?_

 _Jaune, I am sorry. I am sorry!_

 _Jaune, you fucking asshole._

 _Jaune, why, why, why? Why,why, why, why,why, why, why?_

 _Why that bitch? Why that fucking sickening whore?_

 _Why that Faunus cunt?_

 _Answer me! Answer me! Answer me!_

 _Jaune, please respond._

 _If you don't answer, I am going to be upset._

 _Do you want me to hurt them?_

 _Do you want me to end your family?_

 _I can kill Lie Ren and that cunt Blake, you know._

 _I will end anyone that stands in our love._

 _Jaune, I will kill again._

 _I have killed again, Jaune._

 _That bitch had it coming._

 _I am doing it right now. I am doing it right now._

 _Please, love me, baby._

 _I am sorry, my love. Iva gets frustrated sometimes._

 _I was in your house last night._

 _I saw her making love to you._

 _You were scared. Scared as what Aunt Salem did to you._

 _I know where you live._

 _I know where you sleep._

 _You keep your bunny outfit on the second drawer._

 _Your Astrology class starts at 10:00._

 _Lie Ren starts work tomorrow._

 _Please, Jaune. Please baby!_

 _Please, damn it. I am coming for you. I will fucking kill you._

 _I love you, Jaune. I didn't mean it._

 _Please respond to me, my love._

 _Please respond to me, my love._

Jaune felt his nose dripping with blood. His mind began to fill like a swimming pool. He heard his text message. With his twitching hand, he picked up his cell phone.

He covered his mouth with his other hand. It showed the picture of him on top of Blake in his bedroom.

 _I can forgive you, Jaune. She, on the other hand, I can't promise you her safety. I love you, Jaune._

Jaune ran and torn the room apart. Like a tornado, he scattered the area in search of cameras. "She was in my room! She was in my room! She was in my room!" Jaune screamed loudly, which made Lie Ren walked in.

"Jaune, what's the matter?"

"That Iva bitch was in my house!"

"No way."

Jaune threw Lie Ren his cell phone. He saw the picture of Jaune and Blake. "Dude, what the hell?"

"Then why does she have a fucking picture of me and Blake?"

"Let's go to the police! We have to go now." Lie Ren grabbed Jaune's laptop. Jaune reached for the keys.

The duo made it to the ground floor toward the parking lot. Jaune turned to Lie Ren. "I think you should drive. I don't think I am in any condition to drive."

"I understand. Give me the keys."

As they approached Jaune's car, Lie Ren unlocked the vehicle. Jaune opened the passenger side door. Suddenly, he felt a sharp force hitting his arm.

Lie Ren saw that Jaune had an arrow stuck in his arm. He screamed his name. He ran to Jaune's side as he hit the ground. Lie Ren was cautious. He saw an arrow gun. He realized that the car was booby trapped. That made Lie Ren's blood turn cold.

Jaune was lying on the ground. Blood was pouring out of his arm. He felt weak. It didn't take a genius to know that that arrow was laced with poison. "Call...the...ambulance." Jaune managed to tell Lie Ren before going into unconsciousness.

 _ **To be continued….**_

 _ **I hope you are enjoying the series. I have deleted this series from The Taste of Rain anthology. Now, it stands alone. We would love to hear your input on who you think is the stalker. Please comment, follow and favorite. Thanks! God bless!**_


	6. sixth entry

**_A year and a half earlier..._**

 _I can't believe it, Jaune! You actually beat Nora in her own game._

 _I knew if we add a little competition, she wouldn't refuse._

 _Really? A drinking game on whoever finishes eating pancake last has to drink?_

 _Nora is very delicate with her pancakes. Pancakes are like fine wine to her. Shaken never stirred. Must take her time. Ha! She knew she couldn't resist._

 _Be as it may, you did your job. Speaking of job, are you okay to drive?_

 _I am, Pyrrha. I didn't drink as much as you did._

 _You did drink a bit. I think we should hail a cab or something._

 _Pyrrha, trust me. I am not that drunk. I had a few shots, but pancakes are bread. It absorbs. Plus, I drank water afterward. I am great._

 _Here's a peppermint._

 _In case of the bacon boys?_

 _No, for this!_

 _I love you, Pyrrha._

 _I love you, too, Jaune!_

 _ **I should have listened to her that evening. I went against my judgment because I allowed my pride to take the wheel. I didn't expect rain to be in the forecast. I didn't expect to lose visibility. I didn't know what was going on in my mind. She put her entire trust in me and in the end, it cost her her life.**_

 _Jaune, slow down._

 _Put the gears in control._

 _We are gonna crash!_

 _Jauney!_

 _ **My love, her love, our love came to a screeching halt at the base of the tree. When I came to, I was lying outside in the rain. Pain jolted all over my body. The taste of iron flooded my mouth. Suffocating by my own blood. I spat it out, calling for Pyrrha**_

 _Pyrrha!_

 _Pyrrha!_

 _ **Silence! Not a return of my name.**_

 _Pyrrha!_

 _Pyrrha!_

 _ **The wind and the thunder covered my pleads, my cries. It wasn't long till I saw flashing blue and red lights. I wanted to sit up to see the condition of the vehicle, to see if Pyrrha was okay. I cried out her name again.**_

 _Pyrrha!_

 _Pyrrha!_

 _Sir, we have a live one. Send the gurney quick. Are you okay, son?_

 _Pyrrha! Where's Pyrrha! Tell me if Pyrrha's okay?_

 _ **The man in black didn't answer. The way he positioned his hat told me a grim ending. An ending I didn't want to see or to hear.**_

 _Arrange an ambulance quickly! We have a live one!_

 _We have a live one. We have a cold one!_

 _It's a miracle he survived the wreckage. There's no way anyone should._

 _Get the tarp to cover the body. Call the coroner immediately!_

 _ **Unsure of it was shock from the rain and the pain or the shock that they were referring my beloved as a 'cold one,' I went unconscious.**_

 _Jaune!_

 _Jaune!_

 _Jaune!_

* * *

Jaune immediately opened his eyes. He gasped loudly, grabbing the air as if he was searching for something. Suddenly, he saw Lie Ren holding on. He buried Jaune's head in his bosom. "Calm down, Jaune. You were having a nightmare." He rubbed through his hair gently, silencing him. "Relax, you are safe. You are fine. Calm down."

Jaune pursed his lips. He tried focusing on his return to composure. He saw an IV attached to his arm. He saw he was in a bed. He wasn't wearing his street clothes, but hospital attire. He trailed the IV to where he had seen his bandages. Wrapped tightly where the arrow had struck, he finally concluded that he was in the hospital.

"Sorry." Jaune pushed himself back from Lie Ren and lied his head on his pillow. Before losing consciousness at the apartment complex, he was shot in the arm by a crossbow. A crossbow that was designed to cause harm to either passenger. Whoever did it, intended to harm and it was nothing more than Iva or [jkab] herself.

"Drink some fluids." Lie Ren poured a soft drink into the plastic cup. He put in straw into the cup. Jaune tilted his head to get a sip. He was relieved for it wettened his dry tongue. He sipped it quickly as if he had recently returned from the desert. Or in his mind, the nightmare.

"Thanks," said Jaune.

"The doctor just came in earlier," explained Lie Ren. "They said that you are able to come home tomorrow." His eyes darted to the chair beside him. "I have a change of clothes. I also have your _Assassination Classroom_ with it."

"The latest edition?"

Lie Ren narrowed his eyebrows. "You have spent three days in a coma and that is your main concern?" He slapped his thigh. "You're definitely on the verge of normalcy."

Three days? He was out for three days? He didn't think something as potent could cause him that. He has been bitten by snakes that have done worst. "Just wanted to be sure I was alive." He scratched his forehead to relieve his itch. "I was out for three days?"

"It was an induced coma. The toxin that was in you was very potent. A toxin that was unknown around these parts." Lie Ren placed Jaune's clothes on the floor to have a seat. "They had to go research in other parts of the country to find an antidote." He sighed heavily. "Jaune, whoever did this had the intention to put harm." He looked at the floor. "It should have been me."

Jaune snapped his fingers to Lie Ren. "Lie Ren, no one is at fault. No one was specifically targeted. It could have been one of us."

Lie Ren reached into his pocket. "I couldn't give this to the police." He sniffled. Jaune looked at the picture. It was a security camera of Nora entering the airport. On the back, there was a note. _You have dodged the arrow, Lie Ren. if you have the nerve to come and interfere with our love, then I will destroy yours._

"Nora?" Jaune looked at Lie Ren's teary eyes.

"Nora isn't in town, but the time stamp confirmed that she is coming this way," said Lie Ren. "This Iva is aware of Nora and her whereabouts."

"When did you get this picture?"

"Yesterday morning when I came back to the apartment," said Lie Ren. "It was in a flowery envelope. It had a sweet scent to it." He wiped his tears. "This Iva is serious."

Jaune sat up. His mind began flooding like a swimming pool. A swimming pool filled with concerns, doubts, and threats of this Iva. Suddenly, his mind flashed on Blake.

"Have you seen Blake," asked Jaune.

Lie Ren sighed heavily. It was as if he didn't want to answer. That drew concern.

"Lie Ren, where's Blake?"

Lie Ren wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Jaune, please understand me for this." He sighed heavily. "The police believes that Blake has something to do with your incident at the apartments."

"Blake?"

"Fingerprints were dusted at the crime scene. There were prints around the car that matched Blake's."

"Yeah, we used my car often, remember? What does that matter?"

"There were prints on the arrow."

Jaune felt his heart drop when hearing that. _Blake wouldn't do that. Why would Blake place harm on me? On Lie Ren?_

"Where's Blake?"

"She is currently at the police station. She is under investigation."

"Is she under arrest?"

"Nothing as of now."

"My Oum," said Jaune as he cursed under his breath. "Blake. No way in hell, dude."

"Another reason for concern is this, Jaune. I want you to analyze the handwriting on this note." Jaune took the picture once more. As he scanned through the words, he bit his lips when recognizing certain insignia that looked similar to Blake's.

"Lie Ren, you're not telling me that Blake is involved with this."

He looked away, afraid whether or not the answer he was going to say was going to hurt Jaune. "I don't want to doubt. I don't want to believe it's Blake. However, you must think about this. Have you noticed stuff has been going down since Blake's arrival?"

Jaune looked straight at the curtain. Lie Ren positioned himself in his direction. "Things have become peculiar since Blake's arrival. Replacing your items with new stuff, going to your beck and call for you."

"That's Blake's way of showing appreciation for me. She's very generous."

Lie Ren patted his thighs. He kept nudging in his pocket. Jaune noticed the habit when he was hiding something. "There are certain things about Blake that you may or may not believe." He cracked his knuckles. _Before she attended Beacon Academy, she and I attended ninth grade together at another school. We weren't close back then. She and I were in separate circles. There was a boy that dated Blake. His name is Roman Thorwick._

Jaune was familiar of the name. He was aware that he and Blake dated a few years back.

 _Blake wore her heart on her sleeve. Blake was a bit possessive. Especially if anyone was close to Roman. She watched Roman at an arm's length. She always bought him stuff. She always wrote him letters of her affection. She kept tabs at every single moment's notice. She was highly afraid that someone was going to take Roman from her. Well, one day, Roman had enough and he ended it with her. However, that decision didn't sit well with Blake._

 _Blake wrote letters of her affection and stuffed into his locker every hour on the hour. His email and phone were filled with her messages. She sent gifts to his houses frequently to the point where his parents with the post office to complain._

 _By the beginning of the second semester, a restraining order was filed for Blake to stay away from Roman. Following the order, Roman left our school._

 _Jaune, please forgive me, but Blake went postal. One day, police were called to the school when Blake walked down the halls with a nail-studded baseball bat. She smashed every single window of the hall asking for the whereabouts of Roman. She kept the principal of our school hostage, demanding the whereabouts of Roman. When the principal refused to give up, she hit him with the bat._

 _After the two-hour standoff, she was subdued by the police. She was arrested and charged with criminal misconduct and second-degree assault. Her father downgraded it after talking to the police commissioner. Instead of going to jail, she spent the rest of the year seeking counseling and attending a therapeutic school._

 _From what I was told, she wrote constant letters about her Roman._

"So, how do we know the Blake like we do today," asked Jaune.

"Blake was given medication," said LIe Ren. "Since then, everything returned to normal." He produced a self-deprecating smile. "Well, almost."

 _"Stop it, Blake. What the hell I am thinking? You don't have to do this."_

"No, I won't. You're not giving yourself second thoughts."

"Blake, you should save this for the person you love."

"Tada, you are it."

"No, it should be mutual love."

"Just shut up, Jaune."

"Blake."

"Just shut the hell up. Just stop talking."

"Blake."

"Since you don't believe my love for you, I will force it on you."

"Blake."

"I love you, Jaune. I don't want to say that word. Please, don't make me say that word."

"Blake?"

"Yes, my love. I'm sorry. But nothing you say or do will change my mind."

"Just be gentle, please?"

"Thank you. I love you, Jaune."

"I care for you as well, Blake."

 _No! No! I refuse to accept it. Blake wouldn't do all of that. I know she isn't perfect, but she wouldn't go out of her way. She is too nimble. She wouldn't harm anyone to do something like that._

Lie Ren must have sensed what Jaune was thinking as he wrapped his hands around Jaune's wrist. "Listen, I don't want to believe that Blake is responsible. That is why I withheld this information from them. I, too, want to believe that she is being set up from this Iva. However, I have my doubts." He looked at Jaune. "Can you blame me for being somewhat of a skeptic?"

"A skeptic is a person who also doubts their friendship," said Jaune.

"That's not fair, Jaune," said Lie Ren. "I am here for you. I am here for Blake. I am stating facts is all. Seems like momentum was building the moment she came here. It's like Roman all over again."

" _All over again?_ "

Lie Ren went into his smartphone and looked to his archives. **Early Morning Wreck On Vale National Highway Kills One, Injures One.** "Last year, Roman was in car accident with his girlfriend. They were heading home from a party and had a terrible blowout. The car careened into a steep ditch. Roman was on the wheel. His girlfiend died instantly after being ejected out of the vehicle. Roman suffered injuries when the steering wheel broke his ribs and punctured his lung." He scrolled down. "The police investigated the scene. The wreck was currently under investigation."

"Under investigation? It was a blowout."

Lie Ren sighed. "Forensics studied the tires and saw that they were tampered. When further looking into the vehicle, their brakes were partially cut. At some point, they would have stalled. Police believe that the someone set them up."

Jaune's hands began to tremble. His mind focused on the car accident that fateful night.

" _Pyrrha, did you mess with my car? I won't get mad if you did."_

" _What makes you say that?"_

" _I don't remember turning my tires that way."_

" _We were playing our make out game. You probably turned it and didn't realize it."_

"Lie Ren. I swear to my fucking Oum. Where are you going with this?"

"Witnesses reported Blake being around that area at the time of Roman's accident."

"I thought you said Blake was fine."

"I didn't say Blake was consistent on taking her medication."

 _I just wanted to show some generosity._

 _I wanted to show you that there are people that care about you._

The sound of curtains opened. In front of them were the two investigative detectives that he had the privilege to meet when he was arrested earlier in the summer. "Good evening, boys," said the detective in the blue fedora. "I am Detective Fukuda and this here is Detective Pine. I think we are more acquainted to go beyond these introductions." The response was stale, as if he was trying to put humor in the matter. "We would like to ask some more questions regarding this case." He turned to Lie Ren. "Do you mind?"

Lie Ren shook his head and he exited the room. Detective Fukuda nodded to his partner. "Have a talk with him as well. I don't want to leak nothing else."

Detective Pine and Lie Ren exited the room, leaving Jaune alone with Detective Fukuda. He took a seat where Lie Ren sat. "Your parents are informed and they are on their way by air."

"Yes, sir."

"How are you today?"

"I wouldn't know. Either stuck in the mood between giddy and peachy."

Detective Fukuda overlook the sarcasm. He opened his notebook. "We would like to discuss some matters with you about the investigation of you and this "Iva.""

"Sir, I have given you as much as I can give you. You are aware that she is a hacker. She is a murderer. She is harasssing me."

"Granted and that is true, but each time things occur, your fingerprints are there," said Detective Fukuda. "What we are growing concern is your whereabouts with these murders."

"Murder," said Jaune while correcting him.

"No, Mr. Arc. _Murders_." Detective Fukuda sighed heavily as he flipped back a few pages in his notebook. "An incident occured at the University Manga Cafe a couple of nights ago. A woman was founded stabbed to death behind the alley there. She was stabbed in the stomach, crotch, and back. Her neck was slashed and so was her wrist. When the coroner investigated her body, fingerprints matched yours."

"I wasn't…."

"Hush, let me finish." He was stern with his interruption. "We checked security footages and didn't see anything of you within the vicinity. However, the camera does go black around the time of the murder. It was around midnight or so."

"You see, around that time, I…"

"Have intercourse with a Blake Belladonna," interjected Detective Fukuda. "She, too, confirmed it as well."

"Blake, how is she?"

"We are holding her for questioning. We will discuss that later. Now back to the manga cafe murder. The victim was a student by the name of Melanie Melachite. Are you familiar with this woman?"

His eyes widened when hearing that name. "Yes, I know her."

"How well did you know her?"

"Not well. We had a date and….I have slept with her."

"That seems _more_ than well."

Jaune raised his voice. "It was an one-night stand. Nothing more than that! We didn't leave on bad terms. It was like two ships passing by when ported."

Detective Fukuda swayed his arms. "Easy, easy. I am on your side. I, too, want to solve this case to clear your name. It is just your fingerprints being there in your absence. It just doesn't add up." He flipped through another sheet of paper. "Are you familiar with a Lisa Lavander?"

He jumped from his bed. Detective Fukuda urged him to calm down. "So, you are familiar with her?"

"That is my downstairs neighbor."

He clicked his tongue disappointingly. "She _was_ your downstairs neighbor. She was found dead this morning at your apartment complex. She was found in her bed with a severe head injury. The murder weapon was her lamp."

"Shit! Shit! SHIT!" If Jaune wanted to faint, he would. He adjusted himself while watching the detective write. Jaune could see it in his eye. Despite the claims of support, the detective had his doubts.

"How was your relationship with Lisa?"

"Lisa helped me when I moved in to the apartments. She was very friendly and very helpful. We didn't talk as much as we did since she had her boyfriend. She was a great person."

He scribbled it into his notes. "And your relationship with the victim?"

He looked to his wound. He was noticing blood seeping into the guage.

"Your relationship with the victim?"

Jaune sighed through his nose. "We had sex on occasion. And since you are being _thorough_ , we often have it at her house."

"Never yours." Detective Fukuda nodded sightly while watching information.

Jaune didn't rebuttal the detective's mildly rude comment. What more could he offer? In the matter of seventy-two hours, two women were killed. All had his fingerprints. Of course, he wasn't there, but it still show skepticism toward the detective.

The cell phone. Jaune looked at his bag. He was in search of his cell phone.

"What's the matter, Mr. Arc," questioned the detective.

"My cell phone," said Jaune. "Search my cell phone. It shows the picture."

"What picture?"

Detective Fukuda reached into Jaune's bag to receive his cell phone. Jaune unlocked the phone to show the information. "I believe that she was in my house. Do you see what's going on?" The detective raised his eyebrow. "Okay, this is something I must see. This can definitely help."

"Does that leave me in the clear?"

"As of now, there is nothing we can do with you. The best thing we can do is to keep you under surveillance." Detective Fukuda closed his notebook and put it into his briefcase.

"What are you going to do with Blake?" Jaune was concerned. Despite what Lie Ren was saying, he wanted to know Blake's whereabouts.

"We wanted to see if your story matched Blake's. Two days ago, she, too, received a text regarding a picture of you two having intercourse. This time, we have sent data to determine that your IP address was used."

"Does Blake have any involvement in any of this? Please, Detective. I must know."

The detective took off his fedora. His expression showed frustration, anguish, and confusion. "At this point, she is much as inconclusive as you. Even as we tracked her alibis, she was present at her places when the murders occur. Even the murder this morning, she was under police custody." He scratched his finger. "What I didn't want to tell you until now is that this particular murder at the apartment, there was strands of hair."

"Strands of hair?"

"We are taking it to the DNA lab as we speak." He let out a slight smile. "We had actually let Blake go about thirty minutes ago."

He raised his eyebrow. "Why were you hiding it from me?"

"You presented me with further proof that neither of you guys were involved." He stood up as he was walking toward the door. "We will be in touch."

A few hours later, Jaune was welcomed by his parents when they have arrived to the hospital. His worried mother ran into his bosom, tightening her grip on her son. She was kissing him on the cheek gently, rubbing through her hair. His father remained at the door. He was quiet, well-reserved. He kept his distance, but Jaune could see the tears streaming from his eyes.

"The doctor told us that you can go home today," mentioned his mother as she was gathering his things. She pulled out the change of clothes for him.

His father still stood at the door. He remained silent while Jaune was getting dressed.

Jaune was back into his street clothes. He and his parents were walking toward the hospital lobby. Jaune turned to his mother. "Where's Lie Ren and Blake."

It was his father's turn to intervene. "I think you might need to take a break from them for awhile."

His mother coughed. "We thought it was best to let Blake go back to her father. We urged Lie Ren to head back home as well."

* * *

Jaune was led to their vehicle. As he stepped inside, he had seen that his parents already came with a couple of his suitcases. He didn't argue. It was for the best since many things have occurred under their noses since the beginning of the summer. He lied against the window as the couple was turning into the main highway. He feigned sleep, trying not to hear what his parents were discussing.

 _He should have known better when inviting friends to his home without permission. See what trouble they bring?_

 _Dear! He is a young boy. He knows them. Lie Ren isn't harmful. Neither is Blake._

 _Do you remember what Blake did with Roman?_

 _Honey, that was a rumor. There was no proof that…._

 _That she is possessive? Did you see those things in his house? Those gifts. Things he can't afford? You know how rich people can get. Thinking she can buy my son._

 _She was being generous._

 _Generous? Blake is possessive! Why didn't he see the signs? She is no different than her mother._

 _Honey, don't involve Kali. Kali is…._

 _No different than her daughter. Setting up cameras, putting bugs in places. Do you remember why Ghira left her? I wouldn't be surprised if Blake had something to do with Jaune's car accident._

 _Honey, we said we weren't going to discuss that in front of him. He is still sleeping._

 _Dear, grow up! I know that Blake had something to do with that crash. I know Blake Belladonna is bad news. When can you see that? Why do you think she seeks counseling every day? Why did her previous college kick her out for stalking?_

 _Rumors, rumors, rumors, John._

 _No rumors, Juniper. People in the village knows. It's that obvious. She is bad news and I don't want our son involving himself with her again. She is bad news. And I am done with this conversation._

Jaune tuned them out from that point. He discreetly placed his earphones on listening to music. He allowed The All-American Rejects to numb away the pain. Despite what the police, his parents, Lie Ren had said. He didn't want to believe that Blake had nothing to do with it.

* * *

It was nearly eleven in the evening when the trio arrived to their farm. His father carried his bags while his mother was leading him inside of the house. He ate a light dinner and decided to go to bed. He told his parents that he will talk with them and his sisters in the morning.

He stepped inside of his bedroom to close the door. His computer was the first place he went. With his cell phone in the possession of the police, he needed to contact Lie Ren. He opted not to contact Blake. He wanted some time to gather his thoughts on what to say to her. He went into his Facebook. He was relieved to see that Lie Ren was active. He began typing.

 _ **[Jaune Arc and Lie Ren are connected on Messenger]**_

 _[Jaune, 12:23]: Hey, bro. How's it going?_

 _[Lie Ren, 12:23]: I'm good, dude. What's going on yourself?_

 _[Jaune, 12:24]: Just wanted to see if you were fine. I didn't get a chance to say goodbye after the detective left with you._

 _[Lie Ren, 12:24]: Nothing happened. In fact, he was a sweetheart. He told me not to worry about it and just go home._

 _[Jaune, 12:24]: Oh ok. I am sorry that my parents made you go home._

 _[Lie Ren, 12:25]: No worries, sweetie. I can see why your parents are such worrywarts. They are such mean, mean son of a guns. They were calling a lot of people crazy, including me. I am not crazy. Am I cray, cray? They love to pull people's heartstrings._

Jaune's stomach churned when seeing familiar words into the message. He continued typing.

 _[Jaune, 12:25]: You're not Lie Ren. This is Iva, isn't it?_

 _[Lie Ren, 12:26]: Guilty, you got me sweetie. Guilty as sin, hehe! LOL! ;)_

 _[Jaune, 12;27]: Is Lie Ren dead, Iva?_

 _[Lie Ren, 12:27]: Well, duh, sweetheart. Don't worry, he wasn't alone. He has a friend to join him in the afterlife._

 _[Jaune, 12:27]: No, don't tell me._

 _[Lie Ren, 12:28]: I think her name was Nora. Pretty redhead. I mean, not anymore. A few stamps to the head knocked any seriousness out of her. I am telling you, my love, this Lie Ren and Nora were bad news. Get it, bad news? I am looking forward to reading tomorrow's edition._

 _[Jaune, 12:29]: Why are you doing these things?_

 _[Lie Ren, 12:29]: Because I love you, sweetie. Nothing is going to change that. You pull my heartstrings remember._

 _[Jaune, 12:30]: Please, leave me alone. Please, I don't want any more suffering._

 _[Lie Ren, 12:31]: Suffering? I am doing this for us. These people don't like our love. Like your parents. Didn't they say I was bad news?_

 _[Jaune, 12:31]: Is this you, Blake?_

 _[Lie Ren, 12:32]: Maybe, I am. Maybe, I am not. Maybe I am a figment of your imagination. Maybe I am a part of you. I could be this Blake. I could be anything. One thing is for certain, sweetie, you are the boy of my dreams. I am the girl of your dreams. Once you realize this, I will reveal myself._

 _[Jaune, 12:33]: Are you crazy?_

 _[Lie Ren, 12:33]: I am not crazy. I am your lover, silly. Your parents should be lucky I couldn't kill them. Right now, I have to clean this mess. Killing two people is quite messy and never easy. Please forgive me, but I had to cut Lie Ren's dick. It was a sin and wasn't right._

 _[Jaune, 12:34]: Please, Iva. I can call the police._

 _[Lie Ren, 12:34]: I wouldn't do that if I were you, dear. Bad things can happen._

Jaune received an email. He opened it and saw a link. He clicked to the link to see that it was a livestream video of Blake sleeping in her bed. Another video show a livestream of him typing on the computer.

 _[Lie Ren, 12:35]: I am everywhere, dear. No matter how far you run or hide, I won't be that far behind! Ha! Teehee! That is how much I love you, Jaune. Oh, by the way, I got you a present. Click on the next link. It's another video. Teehee!_

Jaune hesitatingly clicked on the link. On the video, it looked to be a prison cell. He covered his mouth to muffled the screams. It was his Aunt Salem. She was hanging from the ceiling with a bedsheet wrapped around her neck. There was even wrist wounds apparent.

 _[Lie Ren, 12:38]: My love for you extends that much, my love. That's my gift to you. You don't have to worry about that evil temptress. That child molesting whore anymore. Anybody that stands in my way of our love gets it. So, please Jaune. The line gets thinner and thinner. The moment you accept our love, the more we will have eternal bliss. The more you are hard to get, the more people suffer. Either way it goes, you are going to be mine._ _ **The choice is yours!**_

 _ **[Lie Ren logs off of Messenger]**_

 _ **To be continued….**_


	7. seventh entry

The unremarkable, but adequate lighting of the marquee lit the darkened parking lot, or at least that was what it looked like to Jaune. As he sat on the top of his trunk to light a cigarette, he continued to stare at the marquee. Old as the day he saw it on the afternoon of his incident with his Aunt Salem. They had ice cream at the establishment. Even as ingested the smoke, faltered memories returned. Exchanging bites with her, sitting next to her as she allowed him to pick music from the jukebox. Seeing her eyes melting with his joy creating a layer of hate as time has gone on. A part of him didn't want to forgive what she had done to him in his bedroom.

Pondering the past wasn't going to help. He wasn't going to need it where he was going. He took the final drag of his cancer stick before flickering it to the ground. It too was going to become a faded memory. Along with Aunt Salem, Pyrrha, Lie Ren, Nora, and the many others that departed from the virtual hands of Iva.

There wasn't a funeral for Lie Ren. He didn't have any family to claim the body. Jaune and his family were the first to see his body. Jaune dropped to his knees when seeing his best friend lying in state. At least the monster had some decency of preserving some parts of him intact. He was strangled to death. According to the detectives who found him, he didn't see it coming. Because Lie Ren listed Jaune's family as the next of kin, they decided to him cremated. A little gathering was made in his honor along with Nora. She, too, was cremated for she didn't have any family to claim her body. Nora suffered worse than Lie Ren. Nora was found in the shower. She was attacked with an ax. Her body was unrecognizable. She had to be identified by fingerprints and dental records.

Ruby, Yang, Weiss, Coco, Neptune, and a few others attended the small gathering. It was very somber. Not a dry eye filled the Arc's living room. Jaune remained in his bedroom. He couldn't be a part of it. Tears swelled along with the liquor he consumed to numb the pain that he had caused. In his mind, if he didn't invite Lie Ren and Nora, then maybe they would be alive.

Jaune couldn't have any contact with Blake since the hospital. Jaune's family filed a restraining order against the Faunus on suspecting indecent behavior. Jaune was forced to return home. His parents moved his stuff out of his apartment and back to his residence. He attended the local community college until he was able to find another college for his career. Even then, college was becoming more secondary as the fear of Iva thrived in his aching mind.

He was welcomed by the sound of country filling the hazy smoke of the restaurant. This run-of-the-mill establishment was home to the truckers of the night, the shysters, the rebels, the downtrodden, you name it. All eyes were set on him upon his entrance. Many stared at his tall, bulky appearance. His hair looked whiter than a skunk. His hands, his arm was thinner than a string bean. If weren't for his pants covering his legs, it too may have the same description of his other extremities. When it came to the value of his appearance, he was indifferent. It mattered not. He had no intentions to impress because there was nothing worth valuable to him. That is what happened when the loss of loved one sets the mood of depression. Weight loss was a contributing factor, among other things.

He walked down the bar where the handful of stranger gave him glances. He kept going as if they were part of the decor. Upon reaching an empty table, he removed his jacket and sat it next to him. He folded it neatly. Once he got comfortable, he was met by a waitress. She gave him a slight smile. It felt forced, but he could tell that she didn't want to make it any more awkward.

"What can I get you, sugar," said the deep-voiced waitress. He watched her wrinkled hands wrapped the notebook around her.

"A glass of water," he said while continuing to stare at her. He didn't know why he continued staring at the pale-skinned woman. Maybe it because she could use a friend, he thought.

"Anything else," she said before darting her eyes away from him.

He looked at her stained uniform. "Yeah, umm Emmy," he said. "I would also like to have a pack of Marlboros if you please."

"Right away," she said before departing in the crowd who had begun to dance onto the dance floor.

Conway Twitty was the selection of the night. A serenade where others danced to their former years. Even if Jaune liked country, he did not fit into that era. The early days of Johnny Cash were beyond him, incomprehensible to him. He had always thought to stick to music that was relatable or seeking empathy in his era. That was why he could confine himself to the sounds of Coltrane, Miles Davis, and the like. It had soothed his soul like the cigarette he was itching to have. He understood how it meant to be misrepresented. The rhythm, the pitches, it captivated him. It felt that Oum made that music just for him.

He looked at his flip phone. No longer was he using any smartphones for the time being. He had isolated himself from social media or anything virtual until he put Iva to rest. Fortunately, there haven't been any incidents since Salem's death. As a precaution, he purposefully separated himself from his friends. He didn't give them an explanation but wanted time to himself. The last thing he wanted to see was another funeral.

Blake remained on his mind. Many things concerned him, especially with her well-being. With additional information Lie Ren gave him before his demise, why did his best friend inform him of that information? Was it facts? A warning? Was Lie Ren sensing something that was going to bring his demise? Only Oum knew the duress of his best friend in the hours that led to his death. Regret filled his mind on both ends: defending his best friend or defending Blake. Either way, it went, he was between a rock and a hard place. As much as he cared for both, either one was going to get hurt in the end. And the results were as truthful as ever.

He closed his phone. At any moment, he was to be expected. There was a reason why he was here, and no, it wasn't because of the homely decor. He wouldn't be caught in this hole-in-the-wall rat pit especially when his past covered him like a cloak.

The waitress returned with his pack of Marlboros and his glass of water. He pulled out a few singles and handed it to the waitress without saying another word. Before she departed, she slid a slip of paper before walking away into the solemn crowd.

He took a sip of his water. He reached into his pants pocket to retrieve a lighter. As he lighting up his cigarette, he picked the tiny piece of paper.

 ** _After you finish your water and smoke, meet me in the back office._**

 ** _-Cinder_**

He put the piece of paper into his shirt pocket and lied back on the seat while finishing his smoke.

After finishing his preliminary smoke break, he walked toward the hallway where there were three doors; one to the side, one to the other side, and one in the center. The restrooms were on both sides of him. However, in the center was where he needed to be.

 ** _Office_**

No plaque, just handwritten in red. There was nothing grandeur about it. It was because there was nothing significant about the room. However, it was there where Jaune had an appointment. He looked at his watch. He had already known he was a few minutes late.

He gave three slight knocks. He paused and stood there. He looked around before the knocks were returned from the other side. The door opened where he was met with a bodyguard. Unlike your typical bodyguard, the bodyguard was a woman.

She stood over five feet, but her height was only the least intimidating thing about her. She was a young woman with medium brown skin. Her eyes were dark red like the blood boiling in his veins. Her hair was a light, mint-green cut with a straight fringe and bangs, as well as two long locks on each side in the back. Adorned with bronze-colored rings on each of her middle fingers, she managed the door from the inside. She gave Jaune a cold stare as he entered the office.

He extended his arms and spread his legs. Emerald took her hands and searched throughout his body. Jaune didn't flinch or react because it was routine. She did it every time before his meeting with Cinder.

"He's clean," Emerald said aloud with affirmation.

Jaune looked at the front of the back office where a small desk stood. The desk contained nothing but file folders. It had a phone, a humming computer monitor, and a small television where it displayed cameras of all of the tavern. It also included a leather chair where its back was in front of him. The chair was rocking back and forth before turning to face him.

"I know he is clean, where it counts," said the voice. The voice was very feminine. Her eyes met Jaune's. Her eyes were black as the night. As if anyone enters the murky water, there will be nothing but darkness. Her face had a creamy complexion. Her nose was pointy. Her cheeks were a rosy red. She was a beautiful woman. However, she was also a very powerful woman.

She was known by many names. To those who follow her, she was the Fall Maiden. It was very inappropriate to address her Christian name without any honorific. He didn't know her age, but he guessed that she had to be near forty-five, fifty years old. Nevertheless, she has kept an appearance of a woman in the latter half of their twenties. Another thing Jaune remember was to never question her age or how she worked. If he wanted to leave the office in one piece, then he would do what she ordered.

He didn't like her lifestyle or the way she worked, but what she had were information and information was what he needed. Cinder was his last resort for everything was strained.

"Well, you are not going to speak to your Aunt Cinder," she spoke to him in a calm manner. She knew by referring herself as his aunt got to him. It produced a strong body language in the blonde. Although she was no longer married, for her husband, his uncle, joined the departed many years ago, she was to be referred from him by Aunt Cinder.

"I think Mistress Cinder told you to speak," barked Emerald as she remained guarded, ready to attack at will with her weapon.

Cinder swayed her hand. "Relax, Emerald. All is well. It's very rare to have a reunion with my nephew." She chuckled, extending her hand to the seat in front of him. "Have a seat."

"Yes ma'am," replied Jaune

Unlike her chair, which was comfortable and obviously expensive, his chair was just plain that could be purchased at any inexpensive store. He didn't care. He had an agenda: have this meeting as quickly as possible and then get out.

Cinder snapped her fingers were a girl who was naked with the exception of an apron covering her hips appeared from the other door. Cinder instructed her to roll her a cigarette. Jaune watched as the woman quickly wrapped the rolling papers before handing it to her. Cinder slapped her butt as a compliment before the woman bowed and walked away. She looked at Jaune. Jaune reached into his pocket where he took the lighter and flicked it. She took a few puffs before blowing smoke into the air.

"Thank you," she said while taking another smoke. "That will excuse you for your tardiness."

Jaune did not say a word. Growing up, he learned to never back talk her about that kind of comment.

"Get comfortable, for it's going to be quite awhile between us aunt and nephew," she purred while tapping the ashes into the ashtray. "So, how have you been, my dearest Jaune?"

"Great," he replied sarcastically. "Amidst the struggles and heartache of using losing friends and potentially having my life in danger, things have been grand."

Emerald glared at the distressed Jaune, but was quickly intervened by Cinder.

"He's still in mourning, Emerald," said Cinder. "Stand down."

"Yes, mistress," replied Emerald as she went back into her position.

"I am glad that you have informed me, my dear. It brings me great joy that you wanted to reestablish contact with your dear old aunt," she said while taking another puff of her cigarette. "Did you miss me?" She flickered the ash. "Sorry, I don't have any Christmas gifts or any toys to give to you."

Jaune was beginning to stand, but she swayed her hand. "I was kidding, Jaune. Learn how to take a joke. You can be quite stiff."

Jaune held his peace. Badly, he wanted to slap her on sight. Nevertheless, this was the typical norm of his Aunt Cinder. Even back when his uncle exchanged vows with her, he knew it was a mistake. He knew his uncle was the brightest in the bunch. It didn't take much of a genius to know she was in a form of an established gang.

"Yes, ma'am," he said. He was patting his pockets. He was having another itch to smoke.

"It's okay," she said. "Go ahead."

He retrieved his cigarette and lit the cigarette. He took a few puffs before returning his eyes on Cinder.

"It seems like yesterday when I taught you how to smoke," she said. "Time flies, doesn't it?" She looked at the security camera for a moment before looking at Jaune.

"Can we not ponder on that _particular_ past?" Jaune didn't have much time as it is. Iva could be plotting her next move. Who knew who was next? And sitting around to have a chat wasn't helping. He needed Cinder and the things she can provide to help.

"You tell me, Jaune. There has to be a certain reason why you reached out to me," she said to him in a stern, but alluring manner. "I know we are not here for milk and cookies. I think your Aunt Salem did enough of that on her own."

"Fuck you," he said sternly in front of Cinder. "Fuck you very much, Cinder. Fuck everything you stand for at this point."

His comment was returned with a slap. Jaune didn't flinch. He continued staring at her eyes while his face was met with blood from the scratch mark of her nails.

"And you were also quite difficult as well," she retorted. "Your mouth has certainly not learned its place when you are in my presence. You are just how you were with me in the past." She covered her mouth to hide her laugh. "You have certainly shown some kind of growth, boy."

"Sorry," replied Jaune.

"Sorry for what?"

"Sorry for disrespecting you."

"Sorry for disrespecting who?"

He sighed. "Aunt Cinder."

Cinder sat back before taking another smoke. "Forgiven, but see to it that it doesn't happen again. Understood?"

Jaune shook his head as he was finishing his cigarette.

"I was very surprised that you have called me. You must haven't told your parents about this?"

"They know nothing. And I want to keep them at that."

"Don't trust your parents?"

He inhaled the smoke. "This goes beyond perimeters of parental control and police." He tapped the ashes of the cigarette. "Your name rings fear in many networks. The fact if anyone knew you were my aunt could have gotten me in trouble." He looked away. "Especially any debacles involving my friends back in the past."

She chuckled. "Sorry, darling. Business was business." She blew the smoke into his direction. "It was never _personal_."

"Yeah, but this time I think I have warranted a favor," said Jaune. "I need your help."

She cracked her knuckles when hearing those words. "Oh my, Oum. It's like I am helping you with your homework." She lit another cigarette. "What do you need?"

"Information regarding this mysterious Iva." He turned to Emerald to point that he has something inside of his shirt. Emerald walked to his direction and took it from his shirt. Emerald handed the file folder to Cinder. "Inside is information. It has transcripts of text and interaction with her. She knows everything about me and I know nothing about her with the exception of her name, Iva, and her username, [jkab]."

Cinder reached for her glasses. She scanned the information for a few moments. She took another smoke before sliding the papers back to him. "Sorry, but I can't help you with this."

His eyes widened in shock. The only lifeline and that, too, was cut. "Can't help me this? Why?"

She rubbed her forehead. "I have my reasons, Jaune." She sighed. "Frankly, this can get me into trouble as well."

He stood up. Disdain was in his eyes. "Aunt Cinder, this woman has killed many people. People that are near and dear to me. My life was at risk after being hit with a poisoned dart."

She shrugged her shoulders. "What do you want me to do, Jaune? I know I am involved in evil affairs, but this is risky and goes beyond my parameters."

He hit the desk. Emerald pointed her weapon at him. Tears were falling from his eyes. "Aunt Cinder, you all that I have left. I know I haven't asked for much. I know we weren't the best of kin, but I need you right now. Please, Aunt Cinder. I will do anything for this information." He was panting heavily. "At least not for me, but for Aunt Salem. I knew you guys were close. She was the one that taught you where you need to be."

Cinder turned around. Hearing Salem's name in a different life made her look at the floor. She cursed under her breath. She motioned Emerald to leave the room. But before Emerald left, she turned on the stereo. The sound of heavy metal filled the room and it was very loud. Cinder didn't care about the music or the quality. It was loud and she needed it for a reason.

"This goes against my very code, Jaune," she said to him as she turned around. "You must understand that even us villains have standards to live by and if we betray those standards, we can face punishment."

"Isn't that the point of evil? To go against the rules," retorted Jaune.

"So, you have caught to some things from me," she said.

"If the police could have solved this, I would have never gone to you," said Jaune. "This woman has my IP, fingerprints, identity, everything. My best friends are dead because of this bitch. Please, Aunt Cinder, help your nephew."

"It's going to cost you," she said to him sternly.

"I don't have anything in the way of money," he said apologetically. "I can find another way…" He was welcomed with a wet, sloppy kiss. Jaune closed his eyes as her tongue entered his mouth. Coating his with her saliva, her cigarettes, and whatever she consumed.

"You _know_ what I want. Something I wanted more than Aunt Salem," she said in between pants with their kisses. "Do you know what you do to me, Jaune. You know what I want."

"Yes, ma'am."

Another reason why he was afraid of giving himself to Pyrrha. Aunt Salem wasn't the only one who took advantage of the blonde as a child. When he was fourteen, Aunt Cinder welcomed him into adolescence as well.

* * *

Cinder took Jaune by the hand and followed her behind the curtain which led into the private sector of her office. For those who were unfamiliar with her office, no one would've known that there was a door hidden behind the curtain. It wasn't an ordinary door for it had to be opened from the inside. A woman clothed in a black apron and covered by a mask was there at all times awaiting the signal of Cinder to come inside.

Cinder pressed her face against the door and made two distinctive knocks. It was the cue of the masked woman to open the door. Jaune had to hold on because immediately opening the door, there were a flight of stairs. Jaune looked forward while the woman closed the door and stood at her post. The sound of trance filled the darkened hallway. Well, it was not quite dark. A hue of blue and purple peered from certain areas of the hallway.

Cinder intertwined her hands with Jaune as he followed her to where she wanted to go. Where she could freely be herself without the haunting eyes of others, her personal space. She nicknamed it her personal space. Jaune assumed that it was because it was where she could explore her sexuality, her inhibitions, without being judged. Another reason why he didn't enjoy this hole-in-the-wall rat pit.

"Sit," she commanded Jaune to do.

Jaune sat on the queen-sized bed that was covered in red silk. The silk sheets were soft and slick. Very smooth to the touch. He concluded that these were imported. Cinder believed in having the finest things. He got himself comfortable. He scooted his back until he made it to the headboard. He took off his shoes and his socks. He reached for his pants where he had unbuttoned. He unbuttoned his shirt.

"Glad to see you _remember_ your rightful place," she said while licking her lips. She kept his eyes on him. She had hungry eyes. She gripped her arm to display self-control. At any moment, Cinder could unleash on Jaune. But, she maintained her composure. She shifted her hips to show that she was preparing for him.

Cinder chuckled while removing the clothes did she remain wearing when she was warming him up in the office. She slowly disrobed, giving herself tension. She liked that. She wanted that patience. To know that supper was right there, but they were unable to get it. Though the glowish blue lights made it hard to see her, but he can see her toothy grin. She swayed her arms and did a slight dance while taking off her lacy black bra. Her nipples were inward, but were swelling with all of it might. Her stomach was smooth and firm.

The only thing she had on was her black lacy panties. Jaune saw how soaked it was. Her liquid releasing the tension she was having for him. If Cinder didn't want him, her body was a sure contrast.

She crawled to the bed like a lion who was approaching its prey. She transitioned her eyes to her bedroom eyes. And with the stroke of her finger, she whispered to Jaune. "Come."

Jaune swallowed before crawling to his mistress. "Come to me." She says with deeper, but silent voice. When approaching her, she slowly took off his clothes. She kissed his chest while raising his arms to get out of his shirt. She used her free hand to grasp his dick and massaging it. Jaune's lips quivered, releasing a moan as the result.

She chuckled. "Thank Oum I warmed you up earlier, didn't I." He remained silent, entranced by the warm palms of Cinder massaging his dick. She looked at him."You always kept a lovely body," she said. "But, I liked it better when it was sort of _childish_." She stroked her finger against the ridges of his chest. She planted kisses at his nipple. She licked it before tugging with his teeth. With each stroke of her heavy tongue and each stroke of her hand on his dick, he knew that it was not long before he climaxed. "I remember when you had difficulty, but learned to get better at it."

She indented further into his neck with her teeth, then gripped his dick tighter. It's throbbing caused leakage in his boxers. "Let me see my little nephew come for his auntie." She broke the skin into his neck and gripped his shaft downward. Jaune let out a slight cry as he climaxed in her hand. He mustered as much as he could to keep standing. However, Cinder wrapped her arms tightly around him for him to lean on.

"There it is, child. Let it out," she said while stroking his forehead. She pecked him on the neck. He winced from the pain as blood was dripping down his neck. She continued kissing the wound while licking it. "Yummy!" She took Jaune's cheeks and put his lips into hers. He tasted their contents while she continued to press her breasts against his chest.

She sat up and extended her hands to his pants. She pulled down his pants, leaving him exposed to the elements. Jaune felt the cool breeze of his legs along with the sensation of his soiled boxers. "Don't think you won't need these anymore." She laughed as she pulled down his boxers. Jaune helped to remove the boxers before tossing them aside. He edged forward where her eyes met with his dick.

"Look what you did to yourself," she said amusingly. "You made quite a mess. Yes, you did. Oh, yes." She gave him a slight tsk. She lightly patted the phallus of dick while caressing his balls. "I think this boy needs a cleaning. Wouldn't you agree?"

"Yes, ma'am," he said while shaking his head. Whatever right words he could say to get her to relay information regarding Iva/[jkab].

Cinder grab his buttocks as she shoved his dick into her mouth. Her mouth served as a warm pocket as she was cleaning the remnants of his semen. She thrust her mouth while licking the contents. She swiveled her tongue around the phallus, returning it to her attention. Cinder was good at performing oral sex, Jaune thought. She used the tip of her tongue to hit the hole of his dick, which made him flinched.

Jaune released a sound, but her grasp unable him to leave. To keep him stimulated, she used one of her hands to massage his cavity. His eyes widened, causing him to release a harsh, raspy moan.

"Hope you didn't a little boost of the goose," she said in between strokes.

Jaune started thrusting his dick into her mouth as it was becoming hot by her tongue. At any moment, he was close to climaxing.

"I am getting close," said Jaune with his pleading eyes. Cinder used to love when Jaune got that way for she knew that he was in her grasp when he was younger.

"Come for me," she said as she tightened her lips at the shaft before sticking an additional finger into his ass.

Jaune exerted much energy as he could while depositing his sperm into her bank. Each time he spurted, she tightened her lips to drink his white nectar. She continued until his climax ceased and so did his pleasure. She released her mouth from his dick before swallowing his contents.

"So rich and pleasant," she said. "Very delectable. Didn't expect any less." She rubbed his dick with her palm. "You are such a mighty force. I am afraid of the girl who gets impregnated from you."

He frowned when hearing the comment. She looked. "Please take my apologies. Sometimes, I forget." She took her to rub his cheeks. "If there is any consolation, I would've never made a great mother."

She returned to the headboard where she spread her legs, exposing her pussy. She reached for his butt and jammed his dick inside of her cavern. Jaune's eyes widened into tears as the folds of her pussy were embracing his dick.

"You need to take the role of thrusting, doll," she commanded him. He thrust his dick inside at a slow pace. He felt his hips buckled as her pussy folds entrapped his dick. While focusing on giving her pleasure, Cinder was stroking his hair. "That's it, my tender blonde, give in to your auntie. Pump with all of your might."

His lips quivered, his hands were trembling. He was becoming tired at every time he was stroking inside of her. Wanting to climax, he was picking up the pace.

"That is it," she cried. "Keep going. All the way to where you belong."

He knew where she was hinting. The important part where it counted. The many times he had deposited his seeds there. He was very fortunate to not to receive a withdraw.

His body temperature became warm feeling her hot body on him. She continued to kiss him on the neck. "Fuck me, fuck me, fuck me." She kept screaming at him. "That's it. You can do it. Try to make me come. Come on, Jaune."

Jaune started thrusting faster as soon his climax was approaching. The bed started creaking. Her hands were on his sweaty back, indenting her claws into his back.

"Come for your auntie, come for your auntie," she said in between cries.

"I am coming, Aunt Cinder," he said.

She took his face and planted his lips on his. At the contact of her lips, he climaxed inside of her. She bucked her hips so that she was able to take all of his seeds as he continued coming. When he was finishing depositing, he took his dick from her pussy and collapsed on the bed next to Cinder.

Cinder and Jaune were both panting from their encounter. He was rubbing his chest as he was trying his hardest to breathe.

"You...were...amazing...as...always," said Cinder in between pants. "Very well done. I know I have taught you well."

He didn't answer. Cinder lied on his chest while drawing doodles on it. She kissed him a few times on his chest while trying to recuperate.

About an hour later, both Cinder and Jaune were putting back on their clothes. While Jaune was searching for his pants, Cinder turned around. She gave him a piece of paper. "The information that you seek is going to be at the post office. The locker number is 206. The combination is written there as well."

Jaune looked at the piece of paper before retreating into his pocket.

"Your Aunt Salem may not have been the most decent human being, but she has kept up with you," she said calmly. "She left a little scrapbook as a souvenir for you." She reached over to Jaune and grabbed his shoulder. "The security cameras replays itself at six. You have three minutes to be in and out before being traced. Get what you need from there and go. This information will get you closer to what you want to find."

"I thought you were going to help me," said Jaune.

"I didn't promise anything. You wanted me to be useful. The answer is there," she said. "Now, you must leave before anybody else spots you."

As Jaune was preparing to step out, she pulled him again for another kiss. "Be careful out there, kid."

* * *

Jaune exited the diner where he felt the pressure of the morning sun beaming into his face. He spat on the ground while holding his jacket as he returned to his car. He looked at his phone. He had twenty minutes until zero hour. He got inside of his car and headed to the post office.

He had arrived at the post office with a few minutes to spare. Fortunately, he was alone. He scanned the area as he looked for Locker 206. He was met with relief when seeing the locker next to the exit. He used the combination to open the locker. As he opened it, he saw what Cinder said. Inside was a black clear binder. There wasn't any cover pictures. He didn't have time to examine it for the time was of the essence. He returned to his car and left the post office.

As he was traveling back to his house, he decided to get in contact with the only person that could help him solve this case. He waited for a few tones before receiving an answer.

"I am glad to hear your voice." Jaune smiled as those were the very first words he had heard from Blake Belladonna in the last few months.

"I haven't said a word," replied Jaune.

She giggled. "It doesn't matter. I knew at some point you were going to reach out to me."

"Are you able to meet me somewhere?"

"I can. Where?"

"It can't be in neither town. It must be somewhere where she can't trace us."

There was a pregnant pause for a moment. "My father's cabin. He is out of town so it can be used."

"He doesn't have anything with technology?"

"None whatsoever."

"Thank Oum."

"What's the relief for?"

"Because I believe we are on the right track of solving this case."

Blake gave Jaune directions to her father's cabin. Jaune knew he had to drive a bit further, but it didn't matter. Whatever was necessary to solve this case. He scratched under his eyes as he was thanking Oum that he was one step closer to this.

"Today," he barked. "We are going to solve this today."

Jaune stopped at the gas station. He knew that it was going to take two hours to get to Blake's destination. He went inside to use the restroom and purchase some snacks. He even purchased a pack of cigarettes. He phoned his parents that he was at the library studying, giving him borrowed time. The library at the community college opened at all hours so his parents weren't worried about his whereabouts. At this time, his parents were the least of his concern. For this Iva continued, then there wouldn't any time left with his family.

He put the gas in the tank. As it was being filled, curiosity got the best of him. He opened the door to retrieve the scrapbook. He took deep breaths, he slowly opened it. As he did, he only saw pictures of the two when they were younger. Before he could react, he saw something that wasn't a part of his childhood. The further he turned, he saw articles of his times at Beacon Academy. He was surprised and disgusted that Aunt Salem kept up with him. He frowned as Aunt Cinder told him that truth. As he pondered, he saw a playbill inside. He took it out. He smiled as memories flooded his brain.

" _The Little Cabbage._ " He scratched his head. "I forgot that I was in that play. It was a senior project…." His heart skipped a beat. He sat in his seat. Thoughts were scrambling into his brain. "[jkab]...[jkab]...[bajk]...[kajb]...[kbaj]...[kbaj]...[kbaj]...[kabj]...cabbage?" He pulled out his cell phone to phone Blake.

She answered on the second ring.

"Hey, are you lost," she said.

"Cabbage," said Jaune.

"Cabbage? I am lost."

"No, cabbage as in _The Little Cabbage_."

"Oh, my Oum! I forgot about that play. It was last…."

There was a moment of silence.

"Hello."

"Get here as soon as possible, Jaune." She hung up.

If Blake was feeling the same vibe as him, then they both know the [jkab] was a backronym for cabbage. His heart sank when seeing that. If his gut feeling was spot on, then the person who knew about this had an association with the school.

He hurried out of the gas station and headed toward Blake's cabin.

 _ **To be continued...**_


	8. eighth entry file A

Jaune was driving with haste. He was cautious to obey the speed limit, but at the same time, it mattered not. His intention was to solve the case behind whose Iva/[jkab]. Her father's cabin was about an hour away from his village. As he continued driving, thoughts were producing in his brain. A poor habit, admittedly, but he allowed his thoughts to break free into his mind. He had mentioned this to his father. His father wasn't concerned. However, he did say this. "Keep your thoughts as thoughts if you aren't ready to turn them into actions." His reason reasonated more into his troubled mind as he was making the exodus to Blake's father's cabin. He looked into the GPS with curiosity. She said that it was in the woods. Like any place a person is searching, they look for the nearst landmark or town.

Jaune scratched under his chin when seeing the cabin was located in that neighboring village the moderator was killed. He didn't think nothing of it, but find it interesting. He pictured himself on the route from that village to where his college apartment was located. It was a three hour drive. However, if he were to leave from his house, it would have taken at least forty-five minutes. Jaune enjoyed being skeptical from time to time for it wakes up the synapses, he believed.

He kept pressing forward. He was feeling troubled. He wasn't feeling right about this trip. He thought of his mother for she was a spiritualist. His mother taught him whenever he has gut feelings that troubled him, that was the spirit of discernment warning him. He noticed that his speedometer was slowing down. Worried, he pulled over. He put the car into park. He stared at the windshield.

Jaune felt something was wrong. And that discernment grew the moment he phoned Blake. Blake sounded too happy at the beginning then faltered after he mentioned about _The Little Cabage._ He had only found it significant because of the [jkab] account. He presumed it to be a classmate for no one outside of the school would have a clue about that play. It was localized, unless anyone discussed the play, which hardly anyone in his circle did.

Then, his Aunt Cinder. Despite sex being the offering in order to retrieved the information, she, too, displayed worry. And that wasn't like Cinder. Whoever she was protecting or hiding had to be more powerful than she. He opened the binder. Clippings of Jaune's accomplishments were in the binder. Then, he saw something sticking out of the binder. He picked it up.

"University Manga Cafe," he read aloud. On the receipt, it was a purchase of an ice tea and a blue Ramune soda. It was dated at the same time Lie Ren mentioned he had a date with an older woman. His stomach churned. _No, it couldn't be. No way. That is impossible. She was in jail. How was she able to obtain a receipt?_ He opened the binder where he saw the receipt sticking out. Inside was a log. Within the logs were sign-in/sign-out. It even left places that she frequented. The watermark on top of the paper came from the mental correctional institution. If Jaune could produce a conclusion, Salem had visitation rights.

Her marks included the University Manga Cafe, the University library, the pizzaria that he and Lie Ren frequented. Could it mean that Salem might be responsible? He disagreed for the iva/[jkab] displayed her suicide on camera. He was even given a death certificate for his parents were listed as relatives.

His mind then returned on Blake.

 _"My father got into contact with a former member Adam Taurus. Just thinking of his name pisses me off. Well, it was through Adam that my father got into contact with a woman named Cinder Fall. Cinder Fall happened to be his rival of selling Irish Crystal as well."_

 _"Let's just say that my father and Cinder discussed more things than glasses."_

 _"It wasn't long until my mother dearest found out. She went ballistic, Jaune. I don't want to get into details. My mother left. She went to her villa. I haven't seen much of her since. I decided to stay with my father."_

" _ **My father got Cinder pregnant."**_

Jaune was too sympathetic to catch Blake on that. Honestly, he didn't know rather or not it could be true. For all that he knew, it may have been possible. Cinder wasn't a loyal person to anyone but herself. She may have been married to his uncle, but she was honestly married to the game. The game that was called her organization. She was only married on paper. Cinder lost her opportunity to become a mother after she was impregnated by him. Fearing the discovery of his parents, she decided to have an abortion. The abortion caused her the inability to have any more children.

Jaune was fifteen when he got Cinder pregnant. If his timing was correct, then the incident between Blake's father and Cinder happened during their senior year of high school. In other words, Blake was either lied to or she was lying.

He scanned through a few more pages. Nothing more than items she obtained through time that was on Jaune. He had pitied his mother. Even after learning of the rape, she was the only one that visited his Aunt Salem. In secret, he added. Contact between him and Aunt Salem was ceased. The last time he had heard from her was when she sent him a birthday card on his fourteenth birthday. His father was distraught that he shredded into pieces. He wanted nothing more of Aunt Salem in their life.

Jaune's mouth went agape. His mouth was dry. He was frozen in fear on he saw. His hand shook when seeing a photo. It was a picture of Aunt Salem. Sitting beside her was nothing more than Blake's mother, Kali Belladonna.

He needed nothing more. His gut feeling was telling what he needed to see. He put the car back into park. Instead of heading to her father's cabin, he turned around to head back to his house. He put the lead on the accelerator. He picked up his cell phone to call his mother.

 _The subscriber can not be answered at this time. To send a numeric page, press one._

He redialed to call his mother. "Pick up, Mom. Pick up."

 _The subscriber can not be answered at this time. To send a numeric page, press one._

He decided to call his father. It, too, went straight to voicemail.

The speedometer increased each time he called a relative. He called for his older sister, Jan. It went straight to voicemail. He called for his second eldest, Jeanette. It went straight to voicemail. He called his twin, Joan. He called Jenna, Julie, and Junko. None of them answered. Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. Panicking and fearing for the worst, he reached for the phone to call 911.

 _The subscriber can not be answered at this time. To send a numeric page, press one._

"Bullshit," cried Jaune loudly. How could he be disconnected from 911? He called 911 once again.

 _The subscriber can not be answered at this time_ …. It turned into static. A screeching sound pierced his ears, causing him to hang up. He threw the phone out of frustration. "Damn." He didn't care about the speed limit. He punched it to over a hundred miles per hour to head to his house. He veered into the wrong lanes, shouting and cursing at other vehicles. Something was wrong and he needed to solve this immediately.

He returned to his house. As he approached the driveway, he saw what he had feared. Blake's vehicle was in the driveway. He stepped out of the car and ran to the front door. He grabbed the key to enter his home. He stepped inside.

"Mom, Dad, Junko, Jan, anybody?" The house was silent. He walked forward from the hallway. The further he got into the home, he smelled a faint odor of gas. Fearing for the worst, he ran to the source, the kitchen.

He covered his mouth when seeing what he discovered. The gas oven door was open. On the kitchen floor, he saw his sisters. His eldest sisters, Jan, Jeanette, and Joan were tied up around each other. They weren't moving. At the edge of the kitchen door, his youngest sisters, Jenna, Julie, Junko, and Joey were neatly lined next to each other. Their hands and feet were bound. They weren't moving either.

He grabbed his shirt to cover his nose and went to the oven door. He closed it and turned off the gas. He went to Jenna. She reached for her pulse. It was faint, but she was still alive. Being certain, he checked the pulse of all of them. He was grateful to Oum that they were still alive, but just barely. He reached for the home phone, but it was disconnected.

"Mom. Dad," he called aloud. There wasn't any answer. It was dead silent in this house. He told them that he was going to get some help. He left the kitchen and was preparing to head to the garage, but he saw something sticking out of their half bathroom.

It was a hand. On its' wrist was a bracelet. Eight tiny gold stars. Each to symbolize her children. He uttered in fear. Each step he made to the hand, he knew it wasn't going to be a pretty sight. He saw the bathroom.

She was dead.

It was a clean cut. Blood drained from the open wound on her neck. Her eyes were opened. Jaune dropped to his knees when seeing his deceased mother.

"Mommy," he screamed. "Mommy." He kissed her forehead. No warmth returning. Tears were dripping to her face. He kissed her once more. "I am sorry, Mommy. I am so, so sorry." He gave her one final kiss before shutting her eyes. This time, Jaune screamed loud. He cursed the heavens for allowing this Iva/[jkab] to destroy his family.

He stood up, punching the wall in the process. "Where are you, you son of a bitch?!"

He heard something coming from the basement. It was music playing. Jaune turned around to walk to the basement. Switch's "I Call Your Name" was playing. He knew it was coming from the record player. He knew the song. It was the song that he and Pyrrha danced to at their prom. This song was their last and final dance. He took small steps down to the basement. Once he was inside, he saw what his stomach was feeling from earlier.

It was there where he sees Blake. Blake was singing somberly. She was wearing a white sundress. She was stroking her hair with a brush. On his lap was his father. His father was dead. He, too, was slashed in his throat. Blood drained onto Blake's sundress. She shushed Jaune. "Shh! Be quiet for your father is resting."

Jaune panicked. He reached for his phone but Blakes advised not to do so. In her hand was a lighter. Sitting beside his father's dead corpse was a container of kerosene.

"You weren't supposed to see this, Jaune sweetie," she said nervously. "You were supposed to wait for me at the cabin."

Anger filled his mind. He was in a rage. He shouted, "What in the hell have you done, you stupid bitch?"

Blake wasn't moved but instead smiled at the frantic Jaune. "I am freeing us." Her voice got pitchy, resulting in her crackling. "I am freeing us from society. A society that bans us from showcasing my love."

Jaune tried to move at her, but she flicked the lighter. "Either you remain still or I will end all of us." She reached for her cell phone. "Your dear father is gracious enough to give me the code of your security. We have some time to get acquainted." Jaune cursed under his breath for his father and security. The access to the basement is securely locked and there weren't any windows for escape.

"Have a seat at the bed, sweetie, so we can talk," she told Jaune. Jaune was wrapped in his thoughts of his seeing father lying dead. It went away when Blake reached for her gun behind her waist. "Either you sit down or I will make you sit down. Jaune, I don't want to hurt you. I will if I have to. So, I will be nice and ask you to sit down."

Jaune followed the directions and had a seat on the bed. Blake kept her weapon in her hand. She got his father from her lap, causing him to fall flat on his face. No dignity at all.

Blake turned off the record player, grabbed a chair and sat across from him. She instructed Jaune to turn around. She cocked the gun to show that she was serious. Jaune obeyed as she ties him up in nylon rope. She bounded the rope to each end of the bed. Once she felt secure, she put the gun in her skirt, which displayed her striped panties.

"This isn't what I have planned to happen," she said while scratching the back of her head. Jaune noticed the redness on her arms. Rashes and cuts. It looked as though she was scratching to relieve an itch or it was self-inflicted. "You were supposed to be waiting for me. I didn't want you to find out here. I've planned to sedate you at the cabin and get you away from there." Her voice dropped, showing anger. "To get you away from these demons. These sons of bitches that don't appreciate our love." It was a tremendous roar, something he had never seen of Blake before.

"What love," he barked. "Blake, there isn't any love between us."

She smiled. "Oh, sweetness. What we have done earlier in your apartment, that was love."

"No, it is not," he interjected. "It was out of sheer pity. I felt sorry for you. What we have done in that bed was nothing than two pitiful souls wanting love and comfort."

"Lies," she screeched. "Utter lies." She lowered her tone. "Forgive me, sweetie. I am not mad for what you had done. You were brainwashed. The police, your parents, Pyrrha. They've brainwashed you."

Jaune felt the tightness of the rope digging into his skin. It didn't go without notice from Blake. "Hehe! You've taught me how to tie rope, remember? Back when we were in high school."

"Blake, I don't know what's happening or why it is happening," he coughed. "If you want to talk, let's talk." He eyed the ropes. "But, I am going to need you to untie me."

"No," she screamed. "If you do, then you are just going to run away like the others." She hit her head a few times. Her voice became raspier. "The voices in my head are taunting me. _**Leave him alone, Blake.** No, Blake, he is your lover and make him your lover. **No, Blake, don't listen to her. She has issues.** Shut up, bitch! You're the one that doesn't have the guts. That was why I had Blake to do Pyrrha in._"

"Pyrrha?"

Blake slid her hand down her cheek. She looked at the floor. " _Tell Jaune about what you did to Pyrrha, Blake."_ Her deep voice boasts loudly. " _ **No, Blake. He shouldn't have to know. It was an accident. It wasn't supposed to be like that,"**_ said her soft voice. " _Bullshit! You were there and you know it. Blake couldn't stand the bitch. That tramp had it coming. She decided to take Jaune away."_

" _ **No, she didn't mean it. Blake gets confused sometimes. She was trying to get her message across."  
**_  
" _Yeah, right. Like when she injured her ex-boyfriend."  
_  
" _ **Blake was trying to give Roman a message to do not break her heart again."  
**_  
" _Oh, she made sure he got that message. Cut his breaks and then some."_

 _"_ ** _Stop it! Blake has suffered enough. She is incapable of her actions."_  
**  
" _Don't get me that. Blake is in full control of her thoughts. If she wasn't, then these wouldn't come true."_

" _ **Don't say that to her."  
**_  
" _Deny it! Blake killed Roman's ex as well as Pyrrha. Just in the sense of killing Jaune's parents."  
_  
" _ **Don't listen to her, Jaune. Blake cares about you. She did these things because she loves you."  
**_  
"Blake gets what Blake wants, you stupid bitch. Quit giving her pity."

"Shut up! Both of you shut up! Shut the fuck up!" Blake dug her nails into her mantle, which draws blood. "They wouldn't understand. They wouldn't understand." Tears came out of her eyes. "This need, this want. They didn't understand." She looked at Jaune. "My love, my heart, my soul belongs to you, Jaune. You are mine. Mine, you hear me." She pulled out the gun.

"Blake, easy there. Easy there."

" _The Little Cabbage_ is my play, Jaune. I've written and planned for this play since I was a little girl." Blake placed the gun on her lap. "All of my life, I wanted people to accept me for who I am. The times I've been bullied for being a Faunus. The times I have been different around others. 'Why are you playing with him like that?' 'Why are you touching him like that.' 'Don't pick your scars, Blake.' 'Why are you hurting the cat again, Blake?' 'Why are we getting calls from neighbors about their daughters coming home crying, Blake.' Shut up!"

Blake panted loudly. Her eyes widened. A faint smile came. She lit up a small crackle from her mouth. "If they only knew what kind of Blake they were going to reproduce, right Jauney? _The Little Cabbage_ is about a lonely girl who doesn't get any attention from anyone. Her parents are too busy and she doesn't have any friends. One day, the lonely girl see a flyer about a going to the ball. The lonely girl gets excited until a group of girls pick on her saying that she is too ugly to find a date. The lonely girl goes home crying. She sits in the backyard where she hears something coming from the pond." She pursed her lips. "Do you remember who it was, Jaune?"

His stunned fear caused him to relieve himself in his pants. His throat ran dry. The ropes were making him bleed. His mind flooded like a swimming pool. Here he was watching his supposed friend displaying this craziness. All the while carrying a gun, has a lighter to light this place up, and having his sisters unconscious and his parents deceased.

She pointed the gun at him. "Do you remember who it was, sweetie?"

He coughed. He stuttered to her the answer. "I-it was...the… green fish...from the pond. His name was Cabbage."

She clapped her hands tremendously with enthusiasm. "He got it! By Oum, he's got it!" She retreated the weapon back to her lap. "She meets a fish in the pond that says that he wouldn't mind taking her to the ball. The lonely girl says, 'How are you going to take me to the ball?' The fish answers, "why doubt me with so little faith? Be at the ball that night and I will take care of the rest."

Jaune barked. "Why does this play matter, Blake? It was a senior project. We all had to do it."

Jaune felt a teeth-rattling slap across his face with her gun. Jaune tastes blood. He coughed out the blood, including a loose tooth. _" **Forgive Blake, sweetie. It was her other side talking. She didn't mean it."**_

" _Shut up, you stupid bitch! Don't try to cover Blake's mistakes."_

"Both of you hush!" Blake's face contorted. No longer did the brunette look like she did. Her eyes were becoming red, judging by the lines in her eyes. "It is the play I have written, Jaune. Did you listen?! Oum, you were like the others. Laughing behind my back. Telling me that it was a kiddy play. Calling me a little girl, 'wuss', 'pussy', 'a little kitten.' But guess who had to do the play, you mean bitches? All of us. All. Of. Us."

Jaune spat the tooth out of his mouth. Blood seeped out of his mouth. "Why," he managed to say.

Blake gave him an absent look. "Why?"

"Why are you doing this?"

"Because I love you, sweetie." She giggled. She looked at him. She covered her mouth. "Oh, my goodness." She got off of the chair and used a towel to wipe the blood from his face. "Oh, no. What have I done? I am sorry…"

"Get off of me, you crazy bitch," screamed Jaune. "What in the hell have you done? Mom? Dad? Pyrrha? What is wrong with you?"

Blake's face furrowed. Her eyes darted at his. "I'll get to it." She sat back in her chair. She observed his father's dead body. "You know, it is interesting on what your father thinks, excuse me, thought of me. What did he say, 'bad news?'" She let out a smile. "We will talk about that later. Anyway, I purposely made the roles of the lonely girl and the handsome fish to be me and you. It should have been perfect. It should have worked out like it should." She gritted her teeth, making a strong gnashing sound. "Until that bitch, Pyrrha came and took that away from me."

Jaune didn't know how to feel. Rather if he wants to scream or shout or cry, he didn't know what to do. He tried lowering his pants. He needed to be calm. Acting frantic wasn't going to get him anywhere. What he needed to do was to earn Blake's trust in order to lower her guard. "Blake, I may not have been the most vigilant person in the world. But I need to understand this. Why didn't you tell me these feelings from the getgo? When we had sex? Moments when this type of talk couldn't have been useful then?"

"That was because, Jaune, you were too wrapped in the play and with Pyrrha that you never paid attention." Blake whistled coldly. "You were always dense, Jaune. Never aware of how the other person's feeling until it's too late." She exposed the scars on her arm. "Like how you figured me out at the last minute before my suicide attempt."

"Blake, it's never like that. You know I care for you."

"Do I, Jaune? When you and Pyrrha were together, the whole world could be consumed with fire and your first thought was on Pyrrha." She hit her thigh. "You thought of the world of Pyrrha and never thought what kind of person she was."

"I thought you liked Pyrrha."

"Only because we shared the same circles, Jaune," she said calmly. Her face reddened as she wrapped her fist. "Pyrrha played one way around you and another way around others." She scooted her chair closer to him. "How did you think Pyrrha knew of my family? How did you think the school knew?" She sighed heavily. "Pyrrha and I have known each other way before you and I interacted . She was supposed to be my friend. Jaune, I confided to her about my feelings for you. I have told her everything because I thought she was my friend. Then, the next day when we all got together for karaoke, she announced her feelings to you, I felt my whole world was betrayed."

"Blake, why didn't you tell me?"

Tears fell from Blake's eyes. "Didn't you think I ever tried? Making sweets, calling your phone, sending you letters. In the end, I got nothing from you. The only time you had shown compassion when you discovered my suicide attempt."

He widened his eyes. She telling these things regarding Pyrrha was new to her. Along with that, messages and gifts were new to him as well. "Blake, I didn't receive anything like that. Nothing at all."

She barked loudly. "Of course, you didn't. That bitch threw it away so that you wouldn't know I cared about you. Do you remember that poem she confessed to you that night when you were alone in the woods?" She looked at the window. She began to sing.

 _You're making me fall in whatever the kids call love._

 _You are making it easy to fall in whatever the kids call love._

A coolness hit the pit of his spine. Over a year ago, nestled in the woods as he and Pyrrha were sitting in front of a warm fire. They were covered in a blanket while looking at the stars. Pyrrha sang the tune to him. The pitch, the note, the rhythm was perfected in which Blake was singing it.

Blake pulled out her cell phone to him. "Pyrrha wrote a text the same night to thank me for the poem. I've never thought a friend could be this cold." She wiped her nose with her sleeve. "The play I have written. The play I have written for me and you, they decided to give to Pyrrha. The moment, the opportunity to profess my love on stage, but they decide to give it to her. To her? And reduce me to nothing more than a background character? I didn't even have two lines in it." She gripped the gun tightly. Jaune was getting fearful by each time her finger laced around it. "They didn't even credited me for the play. 'What's a Faunus receiving the credit for something they were supposed to do? I mean, even monkies can learn tricks.'" Her voice crackled loudly into the basement. It was terrifying and eerie to Jaune. She, then, returned her sights on him. "A Faunus. A Faunus. And did you know who said it, Jaune?"

Jaune turned away from her. He wasn't sure it was the taste of the iron in his mouth or the scent of the urine, he didn't want to hear anymore. Blake is lying. Blake is lying. It is not true. It is not true about Pyrrha. "It's not true. It's not true. It's not true." He screamed at her. "It's not true, your liar!"

"Be as it may, Jaune. Pyrrha had another side to her. She was mean as a snake and was surly to me," she snapped her finger. "I've carried her back for years. And this is the thanks I get? She had to go." She cursed under breath. "She had to go."

"If she had to go," shouted Jaune angrily, "then why was I involved in the wreck? I was confined to a hospital bed for three weeks! Do you know how much anger I had toward myself for that? How much self-pity? Blaming myself for thinking I was under the influence of drunk driving?"

"Forgive me, sweetness," she said quietly. "But I'd thought you were going to hang with the boys that evening." She stood up calmly. She returned the gun in the back of her waist. "You weren't supposed to take her back home. I messed with her car thinking she would go back alone."

"So, what's your next plan, then," asked Jaune. "You did it! You got what you wanted. What are you planning to do with me?"

She giggled. "To make you my husband. What more can a girl want? I mean, you do _pull_ my heartstrings."

Jaune's stomach churned. Moments were flashing back to him. Moments when Blake left the house for hours on end. Moments when he was interrogated by the police. Hearing those frightening words drew fear, frustration, and anger. "You are Iva?"

She showed a bedeviling smile. A toothy grin spread from ear to ear. "In a way, I am."

"You son of a bitch," spat Jaune. "You are Iva?"

"Jaune, I know you are upset, but I need you to calm down," urged Blake as her hands were laced around the gun. "Of course, you won't understand right now. You are still being brainwashed."

"Fuck you," he barked loudly. "Help! Somebody help!"

"Oh, sweetness, nobody can hear you," she purred. "Besides us, the rest is silence." She took her hand and drew to his face. She stroked it firmly. "Can I tell you why I picked Iva?" She used her one hand to cradle his face with the other with her gun. "Iva is Portuguese for Jaune in both masculine and feminine form." She inhaled his scent, giving him a peck. It followed by another peck and another. "I've picked that name because I wanted us to be one. Like I didn't when I used the username, [jkab]. For you are my Jaune and my little cabbage."

"If you wanted that. If you wanted me, then why kill the others? Why kill the moderator, Lie Ren, Nora, my neighbor, Salem, everybody involved in this? Why go through all of this if it meant so much of wanting me?"

She sat back down. She crossed her legs, positioning herself as if she was informing something new to Jaune. " Oh, sweetness. Who said that I had killed them?"

His body began trembling. "What do you mean? It was you obviously."

She clicked her tongue. "I will admit that I'd killed your parents, Pyrrha, and Roman's girlfriend. But that other wonderful work of art isn't my doing."

Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of the door being unlocked. The footsteps get louder as they approached the basement. "The artists are here." Blake turned around. She was glowing when she saw the people in question. "Greetings, Mama. Greetings, Papa."

A tall, muscular man with black hair, a beard and yellow eyes appeared at Jaune's line of sight. Trailing behind the muscular man was a woman shorter than the man. She had short black hair and yellow eyes. Features that looked similar to Blake's. It didn't take a genius to identify the people in question.

"Good Afternoon, darling." Her father reached around and strongly embraced her daughter. The father-daughter gave each a peck on the lips before she came to strongly embrace her mother, following a peck on the lips. Mother and father wrapped their arms around their daughter. Jaune was bewildered, shocked to see what was happening before him.

"It wasn't hard to find the place," asked Blake to her father.

"No, it wasn't hard, dear. His father and I were very acquainted back in the day," answered her father before boasting in laughter. "Seems like our relationship is permanently severed."

"I must say, sweetheart," said her mother as she let go of her family to observe Jaune's father. "You've learned well. Yet again, you learned from the best." She clicked her tongue. She whistled excitedly before turning her sights on Jaune. "Greetings, Jaune. I am very happy to see you on this glorious afternoon. I hope you are alright."

"Calm your nerves, dear," said her father. "Jaune is a tough man. This isn't nothing to him. He must learn his place soon. Especially if he plans to tie the knot with our daughter."

"Is everything neutralized, daddy," asked Blake.

"If you mean Cinder, then yes." Jaune's eyes widened in fear as he held the documents that were in his car. "Leave it to me and your Ma here to ensure that everything goes well for our princess," said her father. "We will make your wedding day the best it is." He walked to Jaune. "Pardon me for my late introduction. You already know me as Ghira, but feel free to come me your Pops from now on."

 _Wedding day? Pops? What in the hell is of this crazy family?_

"Same to me, dear," said her mother bowing and giggling. "You can call me Ms. Kali or Mother or Mom or Mum, Ma, whatever you prefer." Kali turned to Ghira. "Dear, do we have everything gather for our trip."

"We do," answered Ghira. "However, we have a couple of loose strings to finish before we make our exodus."

"Exodus," uttered Jaune.

Blake turned to Jaune. "Oh, don't worry about the trivial stuff." She looked to her mother. "Do me a favor and pass the chloroform. I don't want Jaune to see what we are going to do next."

"Certainly, dear." Kali returned upstairs in order to get the bottle. Meanwhile, Jaune began fighting the restraints on his body.

"Shh! Shh! Relax," said Blake. "It's harmless. It isn't going to hurt you."

"What are you going to do with my family," questioned Jaune as he panicked. "Help! Help! Help!"

Ghira came forward and gripped Jaune's chin roughly. "I suggest that you calm down, son. I don't want to hurt you, but you are being awfully rude to my daughter."

Kali returned back to the basement. In her hands, the bottle of chloroform was poured onto a handtowel. "This much should do the trick. Yet again, half the bottle is empty. I hope you didn't put too much on the girls. That can damage their brains."

"Like it matters, Mama," interjected Blake as she retrieved the towel. "His old life is dead. Sisters, parents, Pyrrha, Lie Ren, Nora, his Aunt Salem, dead." She draped the towel over Jaune's nose. Jaune struggled while Ghira pressed his body on him. "Don't panic, Jaune. It won't hurt. Don't fight it. Just breathe in. Breathe in, darling. It's okay. Relax and go to sleep. Have a peaceful, restful sleep. Forget those that troubled you. From this point on, it is bliss. Just you, me, Mama, and Papa. Don't fight it. Just go to sleep. Sweet dreams!"

Jaune struggles were lessening. His body became weak. Then, it went limp. Ghira placed his finger under his nose. He got up from him and dusted off his hands. "He's out."

Blake wiped a tear from her eye. "He's adorable. Fighting to keep awake to see my lovely face." She retrieved the gun. "Shall we kill the girls?"

Ghira took the gun from her. He shook his head in disagreement. "Too much time, too messy. Don't need _our_ fingerprints. Kali, take the lighter and kerosene. Cover any ground so fingerprints won't be traced." Kali followed her instructions as she took the items and headed upstairs. He turned to Blake. "Did you do what I tell you to do?"

"Yes, sir. I made him kill his wife and then himself with the same knife. A murder-suicide," said Blake. "His death is minute next to words he called me and what he talked of you and Mom."

"We no longer have to worry about that. As your Mom and I work on our marriage, let's prepare yours," said Ghira as he stroked his daughter's cheek. "Shall we help your mother?"

"Yes, sir."

 _ **To be continued….**_

 _ **So, there you have it. It is a family affair for the Belladonnas. They are all involved in these murders. I commend those who thought early on to be Blake. Congrats! Those who thought it was Kali, congrats. I commend another commenter who thought [jkab] meant JauneKaliArcBelladonna. Admittedly, that was small, tiny hint. Well, my plan is to get this story wrapped up so I can finish other stories. I think this will have one to two more chapters before calling it quits. For those who've made this far, thank you for your undying support. It means a lot. Continue to support your writers. God bless!**_

 _ **A/N: Blake was talking to herself, thus explaining the multi-personality disorder.**_


	9. the lost files salem file A

_**Hey, guys! BD and GOTA, here with another installment of "connected by your strings" Before you read, it has been nearly 20 months since the last chapter. We know it was such a cliffhanger and we didn't know how to end it. Before we decide on Jaune's fate, it is best to know how the seed was planted. This chapter will serve as a prequel.**_

 _ **Salem is serving her sentence for Jaune's rape. She gets a surprise visitor who was interested in her case and offers her an opportunity of a lifetime. Stay tuned as we focused on the continuation of this series. Be mindful that the content in this story may not be pleasant for some readers (content include the discussion of rape (in minor detail)). Reader discretion is strongly advised.**_

 _ **Without further ado, may we commence "the lost files" series.**_

It was the sound of the buzzer that alerted the confined and imprisoned that there was a visitor among them. A distinctive sound. Such as a sound that the prisoners were like puppies running to the gate when alerted that there was a potential owner. A few expect it, others hoped, and there are a small few that fall on deaf ears.

Salem couldn't put herself into a specific category. Sometimes, a visitor would come once in a blue moon. A lawyer here, a distinct relative there. Her stepsister Juniper makes an effort to come once a season. Supplying her with dates, figs, and rutabagas, memories of their former childhood as sisters. Salem lied flat on the bed. On the surface, she was reading a book. It was one of the first books she picked up in the library after exploring the finite campus in her first month of incarceration. In her former life, Salem never liked reading books. Why read when the world passes her by without a wink of sleep or a second glance.

Now, into the seventh year of her prison sentence, books have kept her sanity. Action-Adventure, Romance, Faunus History, Realistic fiction, crime drama, any genre she had read in the library. She never had the desire of going to the law library. Why sit and read ordinances and clauses if she wasn't falsely accused. She was aware of those actions that day after performing the sickening acts toward her precious nephew. She knew the cross she was baring, walking to the riverside of still, murky waters. Entering into a cesspool of her sins, bathing into it until the realization and the acceptance of her crime. She remembered the look on her sister's face during sentencing. The lone family member with crestfallen tears. Salem couldn't look at her. She was the elder sister, supposedly to teach her the ways of life and to steer away from any troubles. It seemed like the elder woman wasn't practicing her own sermons.

There was a knock at her door. Salem raised her eyebrow. It was too early for chow time and shower time wasn't for another day. Folding the crease into her book, she rolled over from the bed. Straightening her orange and black striped uniform as she made her stance. Same as always - identification of herself. For she wasn't Salem in this institution but a number.

"Number three-six-eight-two-B-C?" The dark-skinned guard stood attentive. With his hand to his waist and with a set of keys to the other, he waited until Salem gave his demand.

"Number three-six-eight-two-B-C, present." Salem was used to be called by that name. If it wasn't for the seldom letters she received, taking correspondence courses at the learning annex, and speaking with a lawyer for an appeal, she would think that Salem was a name of a cat or a town or something. Not in this finite walls. A place where it was commonplace to hear a woman scream into the night, asking Oum to kill her or take her away from this place. A place where it wasn't uncommon for a prisoner to seek the latter route of an early release to take a ladder route and kick the ladder down to end their suffering. It was commonplace for a woman to give in to the pleasures of another woman. Even if women weren't their taste, just the feel of comfort, warmth, and not feeling alone.

Salem wasn't that desperate. She wasn't there. Far from it. However, everyone has a breaking point. A scream or shout, affection, and an early release from life. She knew that one day she would be released from these walls and return to the infinite walls of life. To bask in the morning sun without seeing barbed wire, to enjoy a meal without being timed, and overall, to be surrounded by people that would love for everything - faults included. She hoped that one day she can make amends with her nephew, Jaune. Despite her inappropriate feelings for the boy, she still loved him.

She prayed to Oum that she can have his forgiveness. If not, a penance. Something to know that she can move on and move forward from her former past. She had written letters to Jaune. Letters asking for his forgiveness, letters to see if the blonde was okay. The only correspondence of news she received was only from her step-sister. It disheartened Salem that their ties were lessening due to her step-brother-in-law's plight and unforgiving spirit. Yet again, how couldn't she blame him? She would feel disdain and utterance of disgust if she learned that her child's innocence was involuntarily taken away.

It was a moment of weakness. There wasn't anything Salem could say to justify, explain, something that said that making love to her nephew was right. It wasn't right. She could say that she wasn't used to being loved. She wasn't used to having another person give her such comfort, such time. Of course, there was Juniper but it wasn't the same love she desired from the same sex.

Nevertheless, she was grateful for any news about him and her fellow nieces. She knew that Jan's birthday was approaching. It wouldn't be long before Jeanette would be marrying her husband. Joey was already attending kindergarten. Jaune was approaching his senior year at Beacon Academy. These were things that she should be apart of. Holding Joey's hand as she entered the halls of learning. Telling Jan the rights and wrongs of obtaining a stable job. Explaining to Joan that she needed to have moments of being a teenager and not overexert herself with academics. To Jaune, showing him that despite the cold world they live in, there was warmth and love that existed. Salem tried not to think any further. She didn't want to sulk or deliver more tears. No need for showing weakness in this destitute despot.

What would the future behold? Would she be able to return to her former life? Can her sister take her back? Would her brother-in-law, her nieces, Jaune? She wouldn't know until she was eligible for parole in the next eight years.

Salem heard the door open. She extended her hands to alert the guard that she was harmless. The guard made loud steps as he approached Salem. Despite her history in her former life as a gang leader, she was considered a minimal risk. Since her crime was sexually based, she was confined to a special housing unit where people like her resided. She kept telling herself that she was different. These were rapists, perverts, lechers - peeping Toms that were stalking their prey, women who lurked and searched for their victim against their will. She kept telling herself that she was different. Nothing more, nothing less.

After passing her proper clearance, she lowered her hands to her waist. Extending it for the guard to link her with handcuffs, she was ready to meet her visitor.

"Who may it be today, CO," asked Salem curiously.

The guard scratched under his scruffy beard before answering her question. "I reckon I wouldn't know. She wasn't on the visitor's list. However, she knew the warden and the warden granted her permission to see you."

Salem wasn't moved by the whimsical surprise. Actually, she wouldn't be surprised if it was a fellow enemy wanting an opportunity to take out the once fearless leader in her duress, in her weakness. She hasn't heard from Cinder in quite some time. Amazing how she brought up an individual from the bottom of the cesspit, built her to become a proper notorious leader to be, and eventually become misbegotten, born as it were on the wrong side of the tracks. Nevertheless, Salem couldn't be upset. It came with the territory and like she did her former leader, the same happened to her.

Salem kept her eyes on the blue line that led to the visitor's center. The sounds of women pounding the sardine boxes called cells. Girls screaming, shouting expletives, crying in agony, wondering why their name wasn't called. Salem overlooked and ignored the pleas. She didn't want to see the shattered glasses or feces-smeared window of fragile, agile inmates. The sounds of her clinking made echoes with the hallway until she turned and stopped at a door.

The door that led to the visitor's center.

The guard pressed his finger to the intercom. "I have Number three-six-eight-two-B-C from cell block SHU." A momentary silence ensued before hearing the voice from the receiver.

"Inmate has clearance," replied the receiver. The sound of the buzzer indicated that she was allowed entry into the visitor's center. The guard nodded as he pulled the handle for the doors to open. Salem walked forward, keeping her calm steps to enter the visitor's center.

The visitor's center was nothing more than a room of concrete. The seats, the tables, just concrete. She had heard that it makes it easier for cleaning after the day was done. It was cold, scentless. Not even a spray of linen to give it something. Salem assumed that the warden wanted to make it apparent, families included, of a desolate place it was.

The dark-skinned guard extended his finger to the visitor in question. While unlocking the handcuffs, Salem examined the woman in question. She was a Faunus. She had short black hair and yellow eyes. She was wearing a black business suit. It screamed expensive. Initially, Salem presumed it to be another lawyer or possibly another shylock wanting to collect her debts from yesteryear.

"You have an hour," warned the guard as he gathered her handcuffs and walked away from her. Salem turned as the doors were closed and the buzzing sound to commence its closing doors.

"Good Afternoon, Ms. Salem." The Faunus sounded friendly. The kind of voice that was welcoming, as if she was being greeted at a restaurant or at an office. Salem wrapped her hand tightly around her wrist as she looked at the black-haired Faunus. "Hey, if you are a lawyer, I already have enough to deal with." It wasn't blunt, but it wasn't welcoming. Truthfully, Salem has been filing appeals. Not for a lesser sentence but a transfer to either a minimum-security penitentiary or to a mental institution.

The Faunus swayed her arms, blowing a raspberry. "Do I look like a pencil pusher to you?" She paused. Salem could tell the Faunus was either regaining her composure or finding better-suited words to appease her. The Faunus was reaching for something from her purse. As Salem proceeded to walk, she saw she was pulling a white plastic bag.

"Excuse me, Ms. Salem," she told the grey-haired woman. "I haven't gotten a chance to eat and the warden knows I can have an appetite." Salem took a seat across from the woman. The smell of fresh food entranced her nostrils. It was a salmon in garlic butter, served with watered chestnuts and asparagus. Salem had the pleasure of tasting those in her former days. Now, it was just peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or tuna sandwiches with expired milk.

Salem saw that the woman had two sets of forks and knives. As the woman was putting her napkin into her collar, she gave glances at Salem. "Oh! Sorry to be rude! Can you eat?" She let out a slight chuckle. "I am like a bird when it comes to food and I can't eat all of this. Care to join me?"

Salem didn't answer. Her hands instinctively were in the air. Her elbows were on the table. Pride was cast aside as she watched the woman split the salmon in half, using the utensils to put on the plastic top. She used the same utensils to put the vegetables. Salem grabbed the plastic top and pulled it to her side. Using her hands, she grabbed the salmon and placed it in her mouth. As if her palette was buried in the grave, it rose again as the fresh taste of seafood hitting her taste buds. Salem tried her best to keep her composure and from crying. She couldn't think of the last time the woman had a decent meal.

"I'm glad that it isn't going to waste," said the tan-skinned Faunus as she delicately split her salmon. She took delicate bites, ensuring she would savor each bite in contrast to her counterpart across from her. "Ghira thinks I am already skin-and-bones. I can't help how I eat."

Salem still didn't speak. She could either care about this Ghira. In the past, the grey-haired woman would have detested of going through these measures. But after seven years of deprivation and rare contact with others from the outside world, the things that people will do to have some kind of communication to have normalcy.

"Continue to eat up," said the Faunus. "If I don't finish this, you can always ask for more." She continued taking bites while watching Salem scarfing her meal. "It seems evident that this is the first in a while to have a feast like this."

Her eyes immediately cast to the Faunus. Although it could have been cued as egotistic or blatantly disrespectful, the prisoner backed down. Using her sleeve to wipe any remnants, Salem held onto her wrist. "You can say it has been a long time since I have had food like this. Something that didn't taste like from a can or from recycled garbage."

"Mmm! Quite strong descriptions."

"It can be after being here so long." Salem covered her mouth to belch. "After all, you learn how to adapt."

The Faunus nodded in Salem's words of wisdom. "Adaptation. I am quite familiar with that. To thrive is to survive. No matter what trouble may come." She used her napkin to lightly dabbed any remnants on her face.

"So, you are familiar with being incarcerated?"

"I am afraid not, ma'am."

Salem nodded, crossing her legs while eating the remnants of the meal. "Then how would you know about adaptation if you haven't been placed in a position where everything is taken away from you?"

The woman stared blankly at the tired expression on the prisoner's face.

"Do you know what it is like to even have your basic human rights cast aside from you," asked Salem. "Patting you down, checking every orifice of your body. Sharing showers with strangers. Ducking away when a shit, piss, blood, and puke cocktail from a cellmate is thrown at a CO? Watching your back every second because you aren't sure if you would get shanked or kissed?" She crossed her arms. "For the record, girl, I am nobody's bitch or prey in here. So, Ms. Lady-Of-Leisure, if you don't know about that, then you for damn sure don't know anything about adaptation!" She pushed the empty plastic top toward the Faunus. "You're familiar with this lifestyle. You're probably not built like that judging by your clothes and your demeanor, you got a man that takes care of you. You are probably driving an Audi, taking your kids to soccer practice, and maybe having the spare time to fuck your tennis coach boyfriend on the side." She wagged her finger. "Am I around the ballpark?"

The Faunus stared blankly at Salem momentarily while wiping her face once more. "Wow! Pardon my manners! Normally, I introduce myself before I go any further." She extended her hand. "My name is Kali Belladonna."

Using her cleaner hand, she extended it to return Kali's handshake. "The name is Salem."

"Is there a last name with comes with it?"

"Let's keep it Salem. Not sure if you have read my profile, I am not too fond with strangers," she said to Kali.

It was true that Salem was perceived as a minimal threat. Initially, she was placed in maximum security for multiple violations. It took time for her to accept her twenty-five-year sentence. Feeling like an animal in a caged zoo, surrounded by bottom feeders and despots that would react before pro-act. Those were harsh terms to describe fellow inmates like herself but at the time, she was in denial of her sentence. Despite taking it like a warrior at her sentencing, the realization of adapting to this concrete jungle took time.

"Relax, Salem. I can take strong hints," said Kali. "So to be fair, you can call me Kali."

Salem looked at the guard behind the window. His back was turned away from the women. Quite aberrant, she thought, because they always kept their eyes on them. "You can relax." Kali reached into her purse as she pulled a pack of Marlboro cigarettes. "You smoke?"

"Quit after being sentenced."

"Gained any weight?"

"A few pounds on and off," said Salem. "Jogging keeps it off. Even the half-ass yoga and pilates classes they try to do."

Kali covered her mouth to contain her laughter. She nodded as she used the lighter to light her cancer stick. "I can't blame you, smoking I mean. But, _we_ all have a vice."

Salem was going to pretend that the Faunus was generally speaking instead of directing. Seeing her time was upon them, she needed to know Kali's reasoning of being here. "So, if you aren't a lawyer. What is your intent on seeing me? The CO said that you are friends with the warden?"

Kali nodded while ingesting her cigarette smoke. "True, the warden and I go way back like VHS tapes and cassettes." Kali crossed her legs as she was reaching for something in her purse. "However, I am here for a reason, Salem. There is something that I am willing to do for you if you were to help me help you." Inside the purse was a manila folder. It didn't have any words on the file folder. However, Salem could tell by the thickness, there was some documentation within. And the only time she could recognize that is from her lawyer.

"I will admit, Salem that your lawyer and I have spoken not too long ago," said Kali while pushing the papers to Salem's direction. "He tells me that you've been trying to file an appeal to commute your sentence to a minimum-security prison or hopefully, a mental institution." Her eyes glared at Salem. "Is that correct?"

Salem nodded in compliance.

"Your lawyer tells me that you have been pleading to the courts to commute your sentence because you've tried explaining the situation with your past," asked Kali. "According to the documentation your lawyer provided, you were charged with one count of aggravated rape, one count of carnal knowledge of a juvenile." She whistled at the paperwork. "One count of sexual battery…."

"Okay," retorted Salem sternly. "I am _acutely_ aware of my charges. I don't need to be reminded. Especially coming from a Faunus!" She shook her head, realizing her unnecessary prejudice. "I am sorry, Kali. That was uncalled for."

Kali wavered her arms. "I don't take it personally. It isn't my head on the chopping block. Or in the case, on the penis of a young child."

Salem deserved it. She sighed heavily through her nose, realizing her current situation at this particular juncture. She relaxed her body, allowing Kali to continue.

"Your lawyer explains that you are pleading for the mental illness defense?"

Salem nodded in approval of Kali's question. Kali raised her eyebrow.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Hmm-mmm! They say that your appeal has been turned down twice. Once five years ago and the most recent one was two months ago." She was scanning through the documentation. "The psychiatrist, in this case, believed that you were mentally sound and aware of your wrongdoing."

Salem slammed the table. "That _bitch_ doesn't know my history! She doesn't know the ongoing sexual abuse I've encountered as a child! Affairs with my father and uncles, casual sex with my sister and my cousins. I didn't have control! I was defenseless and weak as a kid. Could you at least have pity on my past?"

Kali gave Salem a brief look as she continued on with the paperwork. Salem disliked her casualness of sweeping her story under the rug.

"It says that you were charged for the attempted murder of your father when you were sixteen?"

"I was found not guilty."

"Only because your father died in a mysterious accident before the trial could begin."

"What's your point, woman?"

Kali shook her head casually. "Nothing! Just being inquisitive at this point." Kali turned her body to face Salem. "What if I say that the psychiatrist that was in your last appeal happened to be incompetent herself?

"How do you mean?"

"What if I say that she has a history of alcohol abuse and she happened to be inebriated during your appeal?" Kali said matter of factly. "Would that make her testimony inadmissible?"

Kali pursed her lips as Salem continued staring at her.

"What if I can talk with the warden and use that as evidence to give you a retrial," she said as she looked at her cell phone, "in the next couple of weeks?" She looked at the clock on the wall. "The warden knows the members of the courts very well. And since you are showing proof to work on your rehabilitation, we can see about commuting your sentence to a mental institution."

Salem's expression changed. Her eyes were becoming watery. She looked at the file folder that stood below her. Kali handed her a tissue to wipe away the tears.

"Inside this folder are the papers that can help you with your commuting to the institution," said Kali.

Salem gripped her fist. This was unreal to the woman. Who was this woman who was now acting as her savior?

"What are you," asked Salem.

"Me? Nothing more than a benefactor," said Kali. "Just say I am part of the innocence project."

"Innocence project," retorted Salem. "I am accused of my crime. I am rightfully convicted."

"Rightfully convicted without having the proper psychiatric evaluation," said Kali. "Those meetings were following your sentencing. Did you get anything prior to the sentencing? Did they even use your sexual history to support your crime?" She folded her arms. "No, they didn't! Yes, you are aware of your crime but I still felt it was an unfair trial. Wrongfully convicted in the circumstances of being a victim yourself."

Salem didn't answer. Her eyes examined the piece of paper that could be the answer to her prayers. Kali reached for a black ink pen and placed it beside the manila folder.

"The institution is a low-level facility. It is situated along the terraces of Forever Falls. It is like a rehab for celebrities," said Kali. "All of the amenities, twenty-four-hour care, the best therapists in their profession, and get this! Work release in which you are able to have some kind of freedom." Kali pressed her finger on the table. "There is a pizzeria I partially own. My husband has a bookstore that he owns. You can have opportunities to work with one of us and work on rebuilding yourself back in the real world." She clicked the pen. "What can you say about this?"

Salem felt this was too good to be true. She has been through the river of litigation. She clicked her tongue. "Kali? Why did my lawyer consult you out of all people?"

"Your lawyer, just like me, being to serve justice for the unjust," replied Kali adamantly. "Your lawyer and I wanted to make sure that you are being placed in the position to receive help and not re-offend." She narrowed her yellow eyes toward the grey-haired woman. "You're not getting the help provided here. The conditions are terrible. You might as well be thrown away and rot for the crows to devour your festered, pathetic soul." She coughed. "Excuse the macabre language. But, don't feel compelled if you don't want the offer."

Salem interjected. "No! It isn't that." She didn't realize that she release the sound of desperation in her voice. "I've been fighting this for a while. Not my case but being put elsewhere. I am willing to do the time. I am willing to take my fifteen-twenty-five years. I just want...I just want...I don't even know anymore."

There was a knock at the window. The security guard raised his hand, signaling that she and Kali have five minutes left.

"So, you're telling me if I sign this form, then I am able to have an appeal," asked Salem out of certainty.

Kali nodded in agreement. "If you are able to accept this, then we can have an appeal and you can be transferred to a mental institution to serve the remainder of your sentence."

Salem didn't hesitate when she reached for the paper to sign. Kali showed where to properly sign the papers. Salem pushed back the papers, showing a sigh of relief on her face.

"I can't promise you anything this week, but you will be hearing from the lawyer soon," said Kali as she was gathering her paperwork. She proceeded to stand. "Just understand that I am here to assist you and to accommodate you in every way possible." She pulled a card from her pocket. She grabbed a pen and wrote her number to Salem. "I can be reached at any time, day and night." She extended her hand. "It was a pleasure speaking with you, Salem. I look forward to speaking with you soon." Kali gave the okay sign to the security guard to open the doors.

Kali nodded farewell to Salem as she passed through the doors. She nodded to the guard as she made her way back to the exit.

 _ **A few minutes later…**_

Kali clicked the car alarm as she entered her black two-door Audi. After closing the doors, she reached for her keys and turned on the engine.

The Delfonics' "Hey Love" resumed playing on the radio as she was pulling out of the prison and onto the main road. Using her free hand, she reached for her cell phone to make a call.

She lowered the volume when hearing the receiver answering. "Hey, baby!" A manly voice was heard. Kali released a pleasant smile.

"The seed has been planted, Ghira," replied Kali as she was keeping her eyes on the road. "Thank you for handling your weight with the warden for me. It really helped."

"The warden and I go way back than two dwarfs in a hammock," replied Ghira. "As a former member of White Fang, the bastard owes me a hundred favors."

"Well, this favor is going into fruition," said Kali. "When is phase two going to commence?"

"Tomorrow," said Ghira. "I was unable to do it today. I have to drop a package at the sheriff's substation not too long ago."

"The Torchwick package?"

"Their monthly installments," said Ghira before cursing under his breath. "It is never easy with that girl, Kali."

"That girl is our daughter, Ghira!"

"Don't take it wrongly, baby! I just didn't think her illness would take a life."

"She isn't here with you?"

"Of course not! I just sent her back to Beacon after leaving the treatment center."

"She has her medication?"

"Thankfully, she does!" She paused momentarily. "Let's talk lightly! Never know who could be listening. Call me when you take care of phase two."

"I love you, Kali!"

Kali didn't immediately respond. She sighed under her breath. "Take care of your end of this. That way, you can prove to me that you really love me. We will keep in touch." She hung up, tossing it to the passenger side seat. She turned up the volume while changing lanes. She continued listening to the Delfonics as she was heading back in town.

She used her free hand to reach over to her purse. In another manila folder, she pulled, showed pictures. The first picture was of Salem. The second picture was of Lie Ren.

"Here is hoping that Ren could work with us," she said to herself as she accelerated the speed. The next picture she saw, she frowned. She immediately tossed the folder to the passenger side seat. No longer enthused as she and Ghira were on a mission.

In that particular picture was a family of ten. A mother and a father. Eight glowing blonde sisters. Centered in the picture was a certain blonde boy. Circled in red with an arrow.

 _Blake's heartstrings._

 _ **To be continued…**_

 _ **BD: Happy New Year, my dear readers! I hope you've enjoyed the return of the series.**_

 _ **GOTA: About time, you spazz! You wrote this in 2018 and now it is 2020? Jesus!**_

 _ **BD: Hush, woman! I said that I was planning on tying loose ends and work on some more RWBY series. As well as MHA and MHA x RWBY series.**_

 _ **GOTA: I will say more but heck, I need to put it work as well!**_

 _ **BD: It is good, dear! Anyway, stay tuned for more! Thanks for reading!**_

 _ **GOTA: Strive and prosper!**_


End file.
